Life As I Knew It
by Marius Malek
Summary: Justin was minding his own business when a random and rare universal event decided to throw him straight into the Masaki house. What will happen to him now? *New Chapters!
1. Chapter 1: Quantum What?

***********************READ FIRST (please =D)***********************

First off, thank you for taking the time to read this pilot episode. This is my first attempt at Fan Fiction for well, anything. The following read will take an average of 30-40 minutes, depending on your reading style and pace, so make sure you've got a good bit of time to spare. And make sure you bring patience, and a lot of it. Forgive me for being anxious, I'm a newcomer to this community and I'm not sure what sort of response I'm going to get D:

My goal here is to get some great peer reviews done in order to tell me if I should continue along with this story or not. Don't hold back on what you don't like about it, but definitely let me know what you do like as well!

Before you read, I've written up a quick little story summary:

This fanfic is told from the first person perspective of main character Justin, who randomly falls victim to a rare event on the quantum scale and ends up in the Tenchi Muyo character universe. Once there, he has lost all previous memory of his life and the environment he now dwells in. However, a part of him feels like he knows this new change of scenery. After some interesting confrontations with Sasami and Nobuyuki, Justin meets Washu, who agrees in helping him figure out why he's landed in the middle of the Masaki House. What will happen to Justin once he regains his memory? _These summaries might not be in later chapters. This is to keep the plot from being spoiled. _As you have probably already noticed, this fanfic doesn't continue the story of the Tenchi Muyo franchise like many other fanfics do. Instead, I'm trying to throw in something different into the mix while still using the same genuine characters. I understand that other writers have probably taken a similar approach that I have with this fanfic, so bear with me on the content.

A final author's note:  
>I'm not sure what to think of this series. When I read it, I don't get the same feeling that I would get from reading other people's writings, narrations, fanfics, etc... And I can only imagine the reason for that is because I'M the one writing the piece and thus the story is already known to me. If you get the same feeling please let me know, as it tells me that I need to work on my writing style and presentation to the audience. I realized early on that it would be difficult to write from this first person perspective because it involves me drastically changing the universe with the addition of another main character, while still trying to retain the balance that is Tenchi Muyo. Right now I'm leaning on the edge of whether or not the story is descriptive enough, if I'm including too many unneeded details, or even if the story has a proper flow of direction. <em>I don't want you to force yourself to read it, I want you to want to read it.<em>

So without further ado...

Chapter One

- Quantum What? Pilot -

FanFic written and edited by Marius Malek

A normal day for a normal college student; yes, the daily grind was at its peak as fifty thousand students walked the campus grounds. Even though I knew less than one percent of these people that walked among me, I felt at peace knowing that we all sought the same higher education (who am I kidding?). I was in the middle of campus, taking in the fresh and tantalizing smells emanating from the several restaurants strategically placed around me. It was nice to see the sun finally out after a week straight of thunderstorms, for a while I thought that the overcast clouds would linger forever. With my earphones in, I was blocking out the world around me and concentrating solely on the music as I rested on a bench. Even heavy and aggressive music seemed to calm me down, for I had been very stressed recently from midterms.

I looked up towards the sky, concentrating on a flock of birds soaring several hundred feet above me. I poetically thought to myself how I wish I was one of those birds. I wanted to be free from the chains of society; I wanted to be my own man governed only by my desires and ambitions. In reality it was sort of a foolish dream, dreams you only see come true in shows like Outlaw Star. I envied those characters, even if they were completely fictitious. It was shows like that which put these crazy ideas in my head in the first place. The truth is my life is boring and somewhat predictably depressing. I just needed _something_ to happen that was so unrealistically fantastic that it would completely turn my life around.

Closing my eyes, I sighed heavily in brooding frustration. _If only it were that easy to escape_, I told myself. I try not to think about it most of the time, as dwelling over idle fantasies only seems to cause depression. I ignored my previous thought and began to drift off into my own mind. My eyes slowly shut as reality began to fade around me. Before I knew it I was fast asleep in a public and heavily waded area of campus. I would have been embarrassed if I was conscious.

After a brief moment in the realm of my subconscious my eyes greeted me to a nice surprise. The sun had already gone down and I was still alone on the bench. The embarrassment was starting to settle in, but I felt shrouded and protected in the darkness. Standing up from the bench, I stretched my limbs and yawned with an exaggerated mannerism. I took maybe three steps, and felt something condescendingly heavy take control of my body. It felt as if weights had been attached to my every appendage, but I felt the most pressure around my heart and lungs. It was an insanely unorthodox feeling that I've never had the pleasure of experiencing before. I was confused from the pain, but intrigued at the same time because I felt like I was in no immediate danger – which seemed rather ignorant of me considering my strange circumstance.

The small population of people walking around me didn't notice my predicament; they merely walked by as casually as the leaves blew in the wind. I was deeply troubled by this observation. Couldn't they see that something was wrong with me? The pressure on my chest seemed to pierce deeper into my body, with each pulsation growing exponentially heavier. I tried to scream, but no words escaped my mouth. I tried anything in desperation, but with each pulsation my body seemed to slow down along with time and space around me. It felt like I was experiencing a live-action fever dream unlike any other. The weight kept getting more and more unbearable, I felt like I was suffocating and drowning from some unknown entity.

Euphoria consumed me and I lost all control over my limbs, my head was moving back and forth like it was a cork floating around in unstable water. My vision was the next to go. At first the color faded from my world, and the tunnel vision seemed to come after that. If there was any time to panic, now would be the most appropriate time. My breathing became slow and heavy, unfortunately it was the only thing that I could concentrate on at the time. All other bodily control and functions could wait. Alarms bells were buzzing through every thought process that I could manage.

I couldn't fight this anymore, there just wasn't enough strength left for me to try and counteract this random act of aggression. My body numbed and collapsed onto the ground, and the taste of copper filled my mouth. The tunnel vision steadily increased until all I saw was an abyss of darkness. After that, an incessant ringing in my ear comes into focus. I'm not sure if the ringing had been going on beforehand, but it orchestrated itself in a subtle yet familiar tone that I couldn't quite put my finger on.

Not being able to see anymore, I closed my eyes and concentrated on breathing. As long as I was still conscious, I thought to myself, I was going to be okay. Suddenly, it felt like my body was moving, much like that sensation you get after being on a rocky boat all day. I continually slipped in and out of consciousness, not knowing where I was being taken to, or even if I was going anywhere at all. I began to lose track of time very easily, but if felt like my body was adrift in the cosmos for what seemed like forever. After a while, I felt the inertia in my body cease.

As I began to regain feeling throughout my body, I noticed that I was in someplace entirely different. I wasn't by that bench any longer, or even on the concrete for that matter. No…I was situated on hardwood flooring, which was extremely comfortable compared to the cold concrete. My vision still hadn't come back, and the ringing in my ears was still there but fading fast. Breathing began to get easier and easier as the weight on my chest decreased. The coppery taste in my mouth also started to dissipate. It looked as if this strange rollercoaster ride was finally coming to an end. In all honesty I hadn't realized what just happened to me, let alone how it happened. Sometimes things just happen, and you have to accept it regardless of how illogical it may be.

I could feel myself split between the twilight of dream and reality. I opened my eyes, but saw only black filling my vision. However, after a few seconds of trying to focus, the blackness surrounding my field of view finally started to lessen. What I saw next should have sent me into shock, but instead I observed my surroundings with a calm and cool collectiveness. I began to look around a bit. I was in a living room, more specifically on the floor behind a couch. In front of me, there was a kitchen which seemed to have some activity coming from it. Next to me I could see stairs leading up to the second story, and also located underneath this staircase a most peculiar red door that was situated almost unnaturally.

I couldn't really find myself to get up; instead I just laid there like an unmovable object. Five minutes passed by on my watch and still no activity around me. Was I still dreaming? The ringing in my ear had finally gone by then, and I could hear the clashing of pots and pans coming from the kitchen. There was obviously someone in there. My nose still wasn't working properly, but I could have sworn that I smelt something delicious being made.

Wait a minute.

That smell.

It's Japanese.

I smell Japanese food.

Why the hell do I smell Japanese food?

No, more importantly…where the hell am I?

At this point I had no choice but to get up, my curiosity had forced me into action like it always does. My legs trembled from exhaustion as I started bearing weight on them. I felt so completely lost it was almost laughable. As I got up from behind the couch, I noticed that the TV was on, but no one was watching it. Okay, that's no too strange I suppose. I sluggishly made my way towards the entrance to the kitchen when I couldn't help but notice a bright blue calendar tacked up on the wall. I stared at it for a good ten seconds before registering what exactly it said.

April 15, 1998. No…that couldn't be right, the people in this house really need to get their shit straight. I checked my watch again; the small box that displayed the date was telling me that it was April 15th, 2011. I started flipping through the calendar, and sure enough the entire months had 1998 on them. How bizarre. I sat there in quiet contemplation, now that my brain finally had some time to process what exactly was going on. I was undisturbed for a few seconds until some more commotion started coming from the kitchen. I rounded the corner and took a peek inside.

Alone in the room stood a young looking girl with green hair, she had it tied into pigtails with these shiny red spheres. Her hair was unnaturally long. I took a second look and then metaphorically kicked myself for not questioning just exactly why her hair was green. Was I suffering from some hallucinogenic narcotic? What kind of hippy dippy freedom fighter could have slipped me some psychedelic drug while completely flying under my radar? Maybe someone did something to me while I was sleeping. It seemed preposterous, I thought. Am I even residing in a dominion of reality? But most importantly, why did this place seem so incredibly familiar to me? The young girl turned around to grab a utensil off of the counter behind her. I watched for a few moments as she professionally organized a delicious looking meal neatly on a food tray. I was astonished by her iron chef abilities, especially after concluding that she couldn't be older than 13 years old.

I know this girl, so why can't I put my finger on it? It was gnawing at my very essence, consuming every single thread of thought. She turned around again this time looking in my general direction. I swung back behind the wall and thought about whether or not she saw me. Even if she did seem familiar, I was still in an unknown location. Anything goes at this point. I felt myself enter a ninja-like stealth mode; or rather I took the mindset of a detective trying to find his bearings. The living room in front of me was still empty, in fact the entire house seemed to be vacant of any residents save for that young girl in the kitchen. She was obviously cooking for a large party, telling from the sheer amount of food she had spread out. The wonderful smell reminded me that I still haven't eaten dinner. Great…

Using the wall behind me as support, I lazily slid down and sat on the floor. I looked at my watch again to make sure I wasn't losing track of time since it seemed to be the only constant variable for me right now. I pulled my BlackBerry out of my pocket to confirm the time, but the damned thing wouldn't seem to work even after relentlessly pressing the power button. According to my prized Fossil watch, the time was 10:40 PM. But the environment around me said otherwise. When I sat down my eyes became level with a glare of sunlight beaming through the curtains from the living room window. I searched the room for a clock but found no such luck. After a moment of thinking to myself I noticed the TV remote control sitting on the coffee table, lodged in between a bunch of sappy looking soap opera books.

_I'll just hit the TV Guide button on the remote and find the time out that way_, I thought to myself. However that's when it hit me: this remote doesn't have a guide button and if I'm not mistaken that's an antennae sitting above the TV itself. At that point I sort of had one of those "Ah-ha!" realizations. If that calendar is right, the year really is 1998 and I've somehow traveled back in time to some unknown location. That's when it hit me again.

I've gone back in time.

1998?

Really?

An immense weight overwhelmed me like someone had poured a couple thousand gallons of water right on top of me. I was about to commence a massive freak out session when I heard some floorboards creaking from behind me. From my surroundings it appeared to be coming from upstairs. Someone else is in this house. Good. Or is that bad? But what was nagging me the most was the fact that I've felt like I've been here before. It's just that everything was so lucid and vivid. If I was ever here before, it never had such immense detail before. It was…lifelike this time. It's that itch on your back you can't reach; that thought in your head that you can't escape. I needed a desperate sign of confirmation. Any sign that could tell me I was dreaming, going insane or I really was in some time warped reality.

I stood quietly as I followed the sound of the creaking wooden floorboards above me. The footsteps sounded like someone was lazily dragging their feet across the floor, and it made me raise an eyebrow to the issue. Not because of the dragging itself, but the sheer time that it took for the person to walk a distance that appeared to me to be about twenty feet or so. Needless to say, it was drawn out and was probably unnecessary. I wonder what that poor individual did the night before to move around like that? A little under a minute passed when I heard the sound of water draining from the pipes upstairs and working their way down the walls. The ass dragging began once more, until they found their way back to their room. Well, that was interesting.

Now that the little episode of the walking zombie was over, I couldn't help but look at the red door that was situated under the staircase. Treading lightly, I made my way over to the door and placed my hand on the doorknob. After a tight squeeze I gently rotated the doorknob clockwise. Once I had the latch undone I pulled the door completely open, but was disappointed at my findings. It was just a storage closet. Nothing more. Okay then.

Since my arrival I hadn't ventured past the living room. To be honest I was very hesitant to, but I didn't want to leave either. After a few short breathing exercises to calm my nerves down, I mustered up the courage to explore the house a little further. I figured I'd start with the outside, where people were least likely to be, just so I could remain anonymous for a little while longer. I probably should have alerted someone of my presence from the start, but from my experience people react differently when they notice a complete stranger has entered their home unannounced. Of course, that was my personality just making more excuses at this point.

I needed answers, and I felt like they were all on the tip of my tongue just waiting to be released. I was obsessing over the familiarity of the house's architecture at this point, and I knew that this compulsive disorder of mine wouldn't be satisfied until I had scaled this house from top to bottom. I turned to my left and faced the front door. Several shoes and various other clothing accessories lay neatly by the door's entrance. I noticed a wide assortment of feminine looking shoes, to work boots and all kinds of colorful sandals. The more I observed my surroundings that more I was convinced several people resided in this house.

I lightly stepped towards the front door, reaching for the latch carefully so I wouldn't make any kind of noticeable disturbance. Once the latch had been released from its compartment I slowly opened the door, fearing that the hinges would squeak from the pressure. With maybe two feet of clearance I nudged by body between the door and the doorframe, finally carefully closing the door behind me.

The sight before me was breathtaking. Off in the distance I could see the sun rising behind a beautifully composed mountain range. The house that I stood in front of sat atop a hill, but it was noticeable after venturing further away that this large house was only a small piece of what seemed like a massive piece of property. Behind the house a never-ending staircase that escalated towards the top of the mountain, where another structure seemed to reside. Cherry Blossom trees dotted the landscape, showering my vision with pink. The scenery had very therapeutic results with my current state of elevated stress. I couldn't help but smile at the peacefulness of it all. I decided to take a seat and just stare at the vast landscape before me, taking in every moment of silent serenity that I could manage.

A wisp of wind swept at me from behind, almost asking me to turn my attention toward it. I took a few steps back to observe the house once more. I felt like I was looking at a picture or a memory from my early childhood. It felt so peculiar in this state of déjà vu that it began to annoy me. I still needed confirmation of where I was. It was really the only thing that I thought would ease my mind at the moment. How does a normal person even react in this situation? Let alone myself?

I've got it. Yes it seems so simple now.

I'll just approach the front door and ring the doorbell, act all nonchalant and pretend like I was never in the house to begin with. When someone answers the door, I'll try and explain to them my situation. After all, they'll understand I'm from the year 2011 right? I started making a move towards the front door again, but as I stepped closer and closer the idea that I had just formulated seemed to become duller witted by the second. I let out an exasperated sigh, one of those "here goes nothing" sighs.

My finger approached the doorbell, by my hesitation got the better of me. I felt like a small child consumed with angst and uncertainty. I stood there for a few good seconds with my finger hovering over the button.

"Fuck it," I blurted aloud to myself.

With a quick motion I rang the doorbell and proceeded to act casual as I locked my hands behind my back. After a few seconds of awkward silence I could feel the reverberations of someone's footsteps coming my way. The door swung open surprisingly fast. It was that small girl with the green hair. I should have known she'd be the first to respond. Now that she was face to face with me, I got a good look at her. Her face emanated pure innocence, and her eyes sparkled with a never ending glow of happiness. Of course I could be exaggerating but that's honestly my first impression. What seemed to be embedded in her forehead were two triangular shaped gems. I've seen her before, but where?

"Hello there!" she said with delightful excitement.

"Um…" was all I could muster up before my throat seemed to close, preventing me from saying another word. Her voice assaulted me with multiple waves of nostalgia. I put my hand in front of my face, gesturing for her to give me a second to clear my throat. After a few coughs and hacks I managed to regain my composure.

"Hi there, my name is Justin, maybe you can help me." I said.

"Why do you need help? Are you lost?" she replied with sincerity.

"Yes! Uh, yes…you could say that." Oh dear, where do I even begin to explain my predicament to her? Could she even understand such a complex series of random events? I doubt it, since I could barely make sense of it. I felt my face fill up with blood, now was a better time than ever to become embarrassed and shy. I felt like an ass for pretending like I wasn't in her house not even twenty minutes ago.

The young girl looked at me, perplexed. I couldn't tell what she was thinking.

"How in the world did you end up all the way out here?" she finally said.

That's a damn good question; I've been asking myself that for quite a while now.

"Yeah well…you see…that's sort of what I need to talk to someone about. Are your parents home, an older brother or sister perhaps?" I felt sort of dumb for asking.

She was much quicker in responding this time, "No I'm sorry, my parents aren't here and my older sister is currently out buying groceries. "

Okay no problem, I thought to myself. "Well, is there anyone that I could maybe speak to? I don't want to impose while you're cooking."

Oh shit, I think I just blew my cover. Did she catch on?

"How did you know I was cooking?" She shot a suspicious glare my way.

She did.

Fumbling with various responses I pulled one from random, "I uh…couldn't help but smell it from here. It's very aromatic."

Crash – and – burn.

"Oh , okay then!" she said this time with a smile.

Or…not. I was safe for a little while longer. What was I afraid of? She didn't seem very dangerous. The awkward conversation left me stressed once again, mainly because it wasn't really going anywhere. I still didn't have answers.

"So can I uh…I guess come in?" I asked.

"Let me check with Mr. Masaki first, okay?"

Before I could answer she shut the door in front of my face. I guess I really couldn't complain, so all I could do was take her word for it. I turned around to observe the beautiful landscape once again. The sun was well over the mountains now, and I could feel its rays warming up my body. It was a nice and reassuring feeling. I checked my phone again, but the damn thing was still not turning on. I guess the battery died somehow.

After a few minutes the front door opened behind me. I turned around to see a half awake man playing with his tie, trying to get it just right around his neck. If I didn't know any better I'd say that he was the one dragging his ass upstairs earlier, but I couldn't know for sure. Turning around, I extended my arm towards the man in an attempt to shake his hand. He immediately caught the gesture and shook my hand firmly.

"Hello there, you must be Justin that Sasami told me about." He said. His voice was very friendly, but his smile was very goofy looking.

Hiding my initial interpretation of the man, I returned a friendly smile, "Yes sir, and I assume you are Mr. Masaki?"

He nodded in reply, "Yep, Nobuyuki Masaki; a pleasure to meet you Justin. Now I understand that you have a little problem that you'd like to ask me about. Why don't you come on in and have a seat?" He opened the door, signaling that I was welcome inside.

"Thank you, I appreciate this." I said sincerely.

"Ah, it's no problem. You aren't the first stranger to show up on our doorstep!" Nobuyuki replied.

As I walked in I noticed Sasami was walking out of the kitchen with a small tray in her hand, she looked in my direction, "Would you like some tea?"

Damn she's fast.

"Yes, I'd love some. Thank you." I tried to be as nice as possible.

I figured that manners could only help me in this situation, even if my patience was dwindling slowly on the inside. Nobuyuki gestured me over to sit down by the couch. By now the sun was fully penetrating the living room, casting a nice natural light throughout the spacious area. Sasami put a small cup of hot green tea in front of me, and then made her way towards Nobuyuki. She handed him a cup as well, and he nodded in appreciation. Without a hitch she went back into the kitchen and continued cooking.

"Now tell me," he paused to take a sip of tea, "what exactly is this problem of yours?"

I sat for a moment trying to figure out a way to best describe how I ended up on the floor behind the very couch I was sitting on. That wouldn't do though, I didn't want them knowing that this was my second time inside the house. I guess a little white lie would have to do for now.

"It's hard to explain…" I said putting it lightly, "but I sort of 'woke up' here…"

I continued on explaining my story to him, trying to get across the exact moments that led me here in this living room. I explained all the weird events and sensations that I experienced on my strange journey here, and for a while I figured I was getting somewhere with him. I noticed several instances where he would nod his head in acknowledgement and others where he would just sip his tea waiting for me to continue. Under the impression that he was following me by the letter, I continued my story until my mouth was dry and the tea was gone.

There were a few moments of silence, only the constant drone of the ceiling fan above me cut through the air.

"Hmmm…." Nobuyuki hummed, just sitting there with his hand under his chin, "I'm not quite sure I understand everything you just said there. But, you seem to stand behind what you say, so I'll believe you. I do know someone who is smart enough to figure basically anything out though."

"You do?" I questioned, raising my eyebrow. I was disappointed that I just spent all that time explaining something to this man, all to have him not catch a single bit of it.

"Yep. However, she hasn't gotten up from sleeping yet, and I'm not supposed to interrupt her beauty sleep. Or better yet, it's not wise to wake her from her beauty sleep. So I tell you what Justin, why don't you join us this morning for breakfast?"

"I think that's a great idea," came a soft voice from my left.

It was Sasami. I didn't realize it but she must have been standing there for the entire time that I had been explaining my story to Nobuyuki.

I turned towards her and was about to open my mouth. She beat me to the punch though, "It's okay, really. I made extra this morning so there should be plenty to go around."

She must have read my body language, because I was about to tell her that I didn't want to bother them with feeding an extra mouth. I wonder if she was really telling the truth about making extra on purpose, or if she intentionally made more food after answering me at the door. She was clever and discrete, I'd give her that.

I pitched a gentle smile her way, "I know I keep saying thank you over and over, but I really mean it."

"Don't sweat it," Nobuyuki said behind me, "like I said before. You aren't the first stranger that's walked through our doors, and I doubt you'll be the last too. Here at the Masaki house, we've gotten used to just about anything."

Nobuyuki stood up from the chair he was sitting on. He reached for his briefcase and made his way over to me.

"Well, I hate to leave you so soon, but it's about time that I head off to work." He said.

Sasami's face saddened a bit by the comment, "You mean you won't be eating with us again Mr. Masaki?"

"No ma'am, I'm afraid the office really needs to finish the designs on this building project by this weekend, and I'm their only hope at getting it completed on time." Nobuyuki responded.

He motioned his way towards me, and offered his hand again. I extended out my own and firmly shook his once again.

"Justin," he said, "I wish you luck on solving this little dilemma of yours."

And with that he turned around and headed straight towards the door. As he opened it, a final thought emerged, "Oh, and don't get in too much trouble with the ladies." Nobuyuki chuckled as he gently closed the door behind him.

Oh dear. What could that possibly mean? Ladies? As in…plural? How many more people were living in this house? At this point I had realized that I haven't even gotten a chance to look at the completed banquet of breakfast items that Sasami had been preparing all morning. Does she do this all the time? Doesn't that violate some child labor law? And why does she have green hair?

Whoever Nobuyuki was talking about earlier, I could really use their help right about now. A migraine was beginning to develop from the stress that I was inducing on myself. I couldn't seem to stop and relax for a single second.

"Are you okay?" Sasami asked me.

"I don't really know the answer to that, Sasami. There are several unbalancing thoughts racing through my head right now, and I'm not entirely sure how to make sense of anything." I replied, trying to hide the frustration in my voice. I didn't need to take my aggression out on Sasami. Right now I just needed to play it safe, and plan my actions carefully.

"Well, if there is anyone that could help you, it's Washu." Sasami replied.

I raised an eyebrow, "Washu?"

"Yes."

"Huh…and do you know if she'll be up for breakfast? From the looks of things you've got everything ready, but we're the only ones down here."

Sasami shrugged her shoulders, "Sometimes the folks here are a little slow getting their day started. My sister Ayeka should be back soon. So it shouldn't be much longer until it's time to get everyone down here."

Ayeka. That name sort of made my stomach flinch for some unknown reason.

"Wait here while I go upstairs and get everyone up, okay?" Sasami made her way up the stairs.

From upstairs I could hear several doors opening, the mumbling of voices and several rude sounding comments, maybe some shattering glass. Who knows? I was anxious to meet these people, however many there might have been. It seemed like my stress levels were slowly starting to die down, maybe it had something to do with the fact that I now felt comfortable sitting in this house as a guest, instead as a stranger.

A rustling noise starting coming from the closet door under the staircase, and it quickly caught my attention. A bright white light beamed between the seams of the door and the doorframe. After a few seconds the light stopped, and the door decided to open. Out stepped a short female redhead. The second she closed the door she locked eye contact with me.

"Hello…" she said with some hesitation in her voice.

"Um…Hi" I replied with the same manner of skepticism. The last time I checked, that closet door led to nowhere.

The redhead crossed her arms, "And you are?"

"Justin…and you?"

I didn't get an instant response. In fact I didn't get any response quite yet. She sat there for a while studying me. What did she see? I could hear someone coming down the stairs, but didn't pay any heed to them.

"Oh, good! I see you've met Washu," Sasami said, finally breaking the building tension in the air.

That was the second time she's rescued me this morning. Like I said earlier, she was good. So this redhead chick in front of me was Washu? I really hope that she can help me. The expression on Washu changed from a perplexed, quizzical look to a gentler and more accepting one. Now that she knows that there's a reason that I'm standing in the living room, she could let her guard down, at least that's the message that I got.

I took a look at Sasami and noticed a peculiar looking animal balancing on her shoulder, I was very sure of myself that it wasn't there before. It was looking at me with a stare only a motionless cat would give whenever someone new enters the room. It obviously wasn't sure on how to react to my presence.

"Washu, can you help Justin? He showed up on our doorstep earlier this morning saying he was lost. You can help him right?" Sasami seemed to really care about my problems. Maybe she always cared this much.

"Earlier this morning, eh?" Washu said with a grin, "You must have been the one that triggered my proximity alarm this morning. Well kid, I can't help you without knowing anything. So what's the problem?"

Proximity alarm? She must have been talking about that door of hers. When I opened the door it led to nowhere, but based on what I saw earlier says another story.

"Alright, where to begin? I tried explaining it to Nobuyuki earlier but I don't think I got through to him. Either that or he didn't have time since he just rushed off to work." I said.

Washu laughed, "Dear, Nobuyuki doesn't understand _anything. _Go ahead though, I'm all ears." Washu sat on the couch and crossed her legs and arms, waiting for me to tell my story. She seemed eager to hear what I had to say.

"Okay," I exhaled to collect my thoughts, "from what I can remember…" I explained my journey here yet again to Washu, but this time being a little more detailed in my accounts.

She sat there staring at me and studying every word that came out of my mouth. I got more reassuring nods and gestures from her than I did Nobuyuki, it would appear as if she understood what was going on. When I explained the strange feeling of inertia, the loss of eyesight and the strange ringing sensation in my ears her face lit up. It was apparent that she was eager to tell me something, but she restrained her excitement for a while longer to let me finish up the story. After a few more minutes of narration I finally caught up with the here and now.

Another smile washed across Washu's face, "Do you like science, Justin?"

"I love science." I responded. Her comment was random and perplexing.

Washu stood up from the couch, "Come with me then, I have something you might like to see."

She made her way over to the closet door and opened it, is was the same bright white light leaking from behind the threshold. She stood next to the door, gesturing with her hand for me to walk in. I took a step through the door and let my eyes adjust to the room around me. What I saw made my jaw drop. The technological architecture was something only seen in science fiction. The room around me was a large spatial volume with several holographic monitors moving about the area above my head.

"Impressive isn't it?" Washu said as she closed the door behind me.

"Without question," I responded, still looking up at all the displays.

"This is just a small part of that lab; if you stick around I might be able to take you on a tour," Washu said with pride in her voice, "Come stand over here please."

I turned around to see Washu sitting on a chair that floated several inches off of the floor; in front of her were several of the holographic displays. She navigated them in front of her with pen-point precision, bringing up several dialogue boxes and scanning systems that I couldn't even begin to describe. Taking a few steps towards her, I noticed two small spheres orbiting above my head. They were tracking my motions.

"Right in front of me please. And hold still," Washu said again, she was obviously preparing something.

Following her command I stepped in front of her and concentrated on the two spheres above me. Washu pressed a switch on one of her monitors and the two spheres started dancing around me in opposite revolutions. Small doors opened from them to reveal what looked like a camera lens, out from them shot a green ray of like that started sweeping its way up and down my body. I could feel a slight buzzing sensation coming from my skin where the light would touch every now and again. Looking at Washu, I noticed a three dimensional representation of my body starting to develop on the main monitor in front of her. Several other algorithms swept across the screen.

"It's exactly as I imagined," Washu finally said. She made a sweeping motion with her hand and the monitors shot away from her and stuck themselves on the wall next to me, "take a look."

She swiveled her chair towards the direction of the monitors, "Your body is absolutely irradiated with immense amounts of anti-matter. You reek of a post-quantum tunneling event."

Oh shit, that sounded complicated. "Quantum tunneling? My physics teacher only touched based with the theory of it, I never really got the chance to read into it." I said.

Washu laughed, "After what you went through, I don't think you need to! Although it's a very rare event, it's completely possible, as you've witnessed firsthand. Tell me something, what do you remember before coming here? Anything at all?"

"I remember…" Before. Before Before. Before what? I stood there scratching my head, thinking long and hard as to why I couldn't remember anything before this tunneling event, "All I can remember is the strange sensations that I experienced and then waking up here."

"But you don't find it odd that you still possess knowledge from your past? Like grammar usage and other applications of memory," Washu said, what was she hinting at?

"I'm not entirely sure what you mean," I said honestly.

Washu sat back down in her chair, crossing her legs, "You are able to carry on an intelligent conversion with people and you can still function like a normal human being. But…" She said smiling, "You have no idea what you're doing here, let alone how you got here."

"Yeah, I guess you could say that," I said, unsure how to respond. She was right.

Washu's face filled with excitement, I could tell her previous question was loaded specifically so she could continue on with her explanation.

"Allow me to explain," she said, "I assume you're familiar with the term jet lag?"

I nodded.

"Well, that's sort of what your body is experiencing right now. But it's your brain that's suffering the most. You see, your mind isn't completely here yet. When an object tunnels trough time and space, it is literally stripped down to the molecular bonds of that object. It is then reconstructed elsewhere, but I've never heard of it happening to people before. Consider yourself the first known survivor!"

I think my heart skipped a beat on that last comment.

"Are you saying there's a part of me still tunneling through time and space?" I said completely dumbfounded.

"That's exactly right!" Washu cheerfully said while pointing her index finger up in the air, " In other words, if you imagine your brain functioning as a computer, you are currently working off of cache memory without access to the hard drive, at least most of it. That's how you're able to function normally instead of fumbling around everywhere like a zombie. Isn't science amazing?"

This was hard to swallow, but it made sense.

"That would also explain the possible headache that you're suffering from as well as the feeling of memory loss," Washu added.

"So how long do you think it will be before I regain all of….me?" I asked.

"It's hard to tell, but from what I've scanned so far about half of your memory has caught up with the rest of you," She responded.

"I guess that would explain why everything here feels so familiar." I sort of said rhetorically.

The second I said that Washu stopped what she was doing on the computer and looked at me with squinted eyes, "What do you mean: _familiar_?"

Without soaking in her suspicion I responded, "This house, the area surrounding it, Sasami, Nobuyuki and even you. I can't put my finger on it but I swear that I know all of you from somewhere. And what you just said about my memory not being here yet sort of helped me determine that's the reason why I can't figure out why this place is so familiar. It's sort of like having a childhood memory, where everything is cut into photographic flashes but the timeline is skewed and you can only see part of it…but the memories last with you forever."

Washu sat back in her chair, looking up at the spacious volume above her, "That's….very interesting."

Washu didn't have anything else to say, it looks like my story finally caught her off guard and threw her a curveball.

The hum of the lab was all the filled the room.

"Washu?" I said breaking the silence.

"Quantum tunneling is a random event that doesn't discriminate or choose favorites. It's absolutely unpredictable, you can only observe the aftermath from the other side, my side. But you claim familiarity with this house and its people. It's just all too strange." She looked at me with admiration and was obviously more interested in my story now more than ever.

"I guess only time will tell, you know…when my memory fully catches up with the rest of me." I said randomly.

Washu hopped out of her chair, "Indeed. Sasami probably has breakfast ready by now. Come, let's get some food. I'm sure your journey took quite a lot out of you. We'll continue after we get some energy."

Washu led me out of the lab and back into the living room, where several more strangers awaited me on my return. Washu closed the lab door, and I could hear a strange sound coming from behind it followed by a pressurized seal.

I looked around at all the faces. I was getting blank stares from all of them. From that very moment I could tell this day was just beginning.

**DON'T FORGET!**

Don't forget to give this story a good peer review, your opinions count on the survival/termination of this pilot!

Tenchi Muyo fans! I feel like it's our duty to keep the spirit of this show alive. The characters are too genuine to be lost to future generations!


	2. Chapter 2: Home

Author's Notes:  
>Right well, I had some massive writer's block coming into this chapter, so I apologize for taking so long. I guess I just needed time for my brain to develop the plot enough for me to actually be able to sit down a type it up. College finals are finally over as well and I'm on summer vacation, so that was another roadblock I had to get through.<br>Anyway, I think I like this chapter a lot better than my first, mainly because we have some interesting developments and A LOT more dialogue between the characters - which I'm sure we'll all enjoy. In case any of you are wondering, this takes place in the OVA Universe, not any of the spin offs. I want to stay true to the original story, while of course throwing in a few twists of my own.  
>Like last chapter, this one will probably take you anywhere from 30 to 40 minutes to read casually through, so make sure you have some time to kill. Again, thanks for reading this and be sure to leave me some feedback!<p>

* * *

><p>Life As I Knew It<p>

Chapter Two: "Home"

[][][]

Ryoko continually stirred in her queen sized bed, unable to find a comfortable position to try and fall back asleep. There was something in the house, something new that she hadn't ever sensed before. The pressure was faint, but constant. She could feel it earlier this morning when she had gotten up to use the bathroom, but paid no attention to it while she dragged herself back into bed. But now the small shimmer of energy was getting in the way of her sleep. Twenty minutes passed by, but Ryoko was still just as attentive to it and ignoring it no longer became an option.

This would be the first time in months that Ryoko would be up before the day had officially started. Nearly a complete one hundred day cycle of sleeping in past noon will be broken in mere moments – all thanks to a tiny flicker of energy. On any given day, Ryoko would waste half of it sleeping in, and then the other half troubling the residents of the Masaki house all through the night. It had gotten to be a routine habit for the space pirate that no one dared contest. Everyone knew Ryoko's schedule by this point, so no one would even bother anticipating her to help out with the morning rituals, let alone join them for breakfast. That's why when Sasami made her rounds this morning waking everyone up, she ignored Ryoko's room entirely; and Ryoko wanted it that way.

She tossed around in her bed once more, wrapping herself up in her comforter in the process, but then rolled around onto her back. Laying there with her hands clasped behind her head, Ryoko stared blankly into the ceiling. She was waiting for a sign to see if her body would allow her to go back to sleep, but after five minutes of silence it was clear Ryoko had no hope in sight of returning to her slumber. The entire upstairs half of the Masaki house was dead quiet, with only the small sound of air being pushed through the vents. By now, the others would have already gotten dressed and headed downstairs for breakfast.

Ryoko closed her eyes, inhaled deeply and released a large and drawn out sigh, knowing now that rest would not find her this morning. She was fighting a losing battle with curiosity, and when she finally yielded she knew she would have to get up and investigate the source of the presence that nagged her relentlessly. Finally fed up, Ryoko threw the covers off of her naked figure and swung her legs around to the side of her bed. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes and stared down at the hardwood floor, waiting for her brain to finally wake up and kick into gear.

The sun glared through the gaps in the blinds behind Ryoko, creating a warm glow behind her and casting a shadow headed towards her bedroom door. It was still very early in the morning, so early that it almost seemed alien to Ryoko. From her position beside her bed Ryoko could see her reflection in the mirror that was suspended on the wall to the right. She stared at herself; the effects of her body being up this early were already recognizable even from this distance. Standing up, Ryoko began searching her unorganized room for some clean clothes to throw on. Underwear obviously took priority, so she rummaged around her pile of clothes for some of those first. After finding a satisfactory pair, she reached for her traditional green and pink dress and slipped it on.

Ryoko walked up to the mirror and starred into her golden hazel eyes. Her life had taken several unfortunate turns recently and the strain she was putting on her emotions showed through her complexion. Ever since Tenchi had gone off to college, Ryoko had felt distanced from him, with each day tearing them further and further apart. Everyone in the house has shown some signs of depression since Tenchi left, yet no one could bear to admit it at this point. After all, three years is a long time to build up a relationship of this caliber, just to have it go on hiatus for who knows how long. It wasn't a desirable realization to ever think about, so Ryoko buried that thought into the back of her mind. She didn't want to start her morning off with any unneeded negativity.

The faint energy was once again brought to Ryoko's full attention. What could it be? She controlled her breathing and concentrated on the aura. It pulsated out in waves, almost like a sonar beacon, but the strength of each wave varied almost every time. A second later and she could definitely pinpoint its location: the living room. _The Living Room? _Where everyone else is right now? The sudden thought struck right through Ryoko. Her eyes widened and she made her way towards her bedroom door. She couldn't make any sense of it. The energy that poured out from this entity was so foreign that it was just enough to cause alarm; just enough to cause suspicion.

Without hesitation Ryoko phase shifted her body straight through the wall, completely ignoring the door not even three feet away. Was this another experiment by Washu? What could she have possibly done this time? To avoid detection, she floating several inches above the hardwood flooring and slowly made her way towards the stairs. As Ryoko drew closer to the steps, the signal became stronger. She could hear chatter coming from the living room. The tone of the voices indicated no sign of distress or any other sign of emotional anxiety. Ryoko stopped at the top of the staircase to listen in more attentively. She needed a better look at the situation without being noticed. She stuck her head through the wall and stared down into the living room to get a bird's eye view. Everyone was gathered around Washu. A young looking boy stood beside her. The curiosity inside Ryoko peaked. She needed to know now more than ever. The energy source was coming straight from _him._

[][][]

Every face that stared at me was recognizable in some way, and yet because of this relentless state of half-assed amnesia I couldn't put my finger on any of them. It was becoming another annoyance at this point, just like having a bug bite that taunts you every so often and the only thing you can really do is wait it out. Sasami and Washu I already knew from this morning, but the three strange faces in front of me I didn't have a clue about. I needed another bailout from Sasami, I needed her to work her charm on these people so I can stop standing here looking like an idiot. When I looked over at Washu, she was already looking back at me with her arms crossed and a slight grin on her face. Her stance suggested that she was waiting on me to say something to the group.

"You're pretty bad with meeting new faces aren't ya, kid?" Washu said sarcastically.

I rubbed the back of my head, trying to come up with an excuse. "Well it's not like I'm in my element or anything."

"Well now's your chance to work on that." Washu replied as she extended her hand towards the direction of the strangers.

Whatever, let's just get this over with. "Alright well, long story short: I'm Justin and I have absolutely no clue how the hell I got here. Washu has promised me that my memory will eventually return to me, but she's not sure how long that will take. So for now, just bear with me during conversations because I may be drawing blanks when it comes to remembering things. Um…Yeah," I guess I could have been a little more formal and less of an ass. I looked back at Washu; she just smiled and rolled her eyes at me.

One of the strangers stepped forward. Her long purple hair and magenta colored eyes stood out immediately. "Greetings Justin, I'm Ayeka. You met my little sister, Sasami, this morning." She finished her introduction with a slight bow.

I shot a fake smile her way, "It's good to meet you Ayeka." Something about her just rubbed me the wrong way. I just wish I knew why. She seemed too proper for my liking, and her accent didn't help.

Stranger number two stepped up to the plate. She was a blonde with blue eyes, the most normal thing I've seen this morning. "Hi there!" she said waving her hand at me. "I'm Mihoshi and…" Mihoshi turned around and grabbed stranger number three, shoving her in front, "…this is my partner Kiyone!" Kiyone looked severely surprised by Mihoshi's random and spontaneous action, she also looked slightly annoyed.

Kiyone tried to regain her composure, "Yes well…thanks for that Mihoshi," She turned my way and extended her hand, "I'm Kiyone, it's good to see a new face every once and a while." I extended my own hand and gave hers a firm shake. At least some formality remained in this awkward acquaintance.

"Thanks for the warm welcome. And that's to all of you." I said. It's rather strange at how well I'm being treated around these people. Maybe wherever I was from, there was a huge lack of hospitality. There are still so many questions that I need answers to. But right now, I needed to keep my head cool so I don't stress myself out.

"Can we eat now?" Mihoshi blurted out.

"Yes I've got everything ready," Sasami said, "but just don't eat everything Mihoshi, we have Justin here with us as well."

Everyone started making their way into the kitchen. As to not be rude, I waited for them to finish entering. Washu stood right next to me; it appeared to me as if she was doing the same. That was until she looked straight at me again.

"Justin." Washu said to get my attention. Her voice was stern; I knew she had something important to say.

"Yeah?"

"After we're done eating breakfast, I really need you to come back into my lab. There are some tests that I'd like to run. Nothing life threatening of course. But to be completely fair, just know that I'm not forcing you into anything. It's your choice."

I was puzzled by Washu's response. Her tone of voice revealed some anxiety deep down that she was trying to hide. "Washu it's no problem. I've still got so many questions to ask you, and I'm sure you have several for me as well. Just let me know when you're ready and we'll do anything that you feel is necessary."

Washu simply smiled, "Thank you. Now let's go eat."

"After you," I said, prompting my hand towards the kitchen.

It looks like my only choice is to go along for the ride, for lack of a better phrase, until I figured out what exactly is going on. According to my watch it's only been an hour since I arrived in this house, but so much has developed in that short amount of time that I couldn't keep up with it. I feel like I just need to take a step back and soak all of this in. But right now I could feel my stomach doing all of the talking. I started walking towards the kitchen until something out of my peripheral vision caught my attention. At first I brushed it off as being a curtain blowing in the wind; that is until I realized the curtains weren't pink and green. The sudden realization stopped me in my tracks, and I quickly turned my head around to see if anything was there.

Nothing. Maybe a pinkish-green blur? It has hard to tell.

"Right then…" I said to myself. The last thing I need right now is to be seeing things that aren't there. But…I could have sworn there actually was something there.

I walked into the kitchen to see that everyone had already sat down in their seats. An empty chair was left in the middle of the table, obviously for me. It looks like they wanted me to be the center of attention. It's not like they would be able to get much out of me at this point, I could carry on a conversation to an extent – but if you ask me to talk about myself or my past you'll get nothing out of me. It's a troubling thought to realize that you have been severed completely from your own memories. They are really the only thing that makes you a person. And it brings up an interesting question: Am I still acting like myself, or have I adopted the persona of someone entirely different? I felt powerless after pondering such a thing.

"I take it that empty chair in the middle is mine?" I asked.

Sasami gave me a nod, "Yep, go ahead and help yourself."

I pulled the chair out from the table and sat down next to Washu and Ayeka. I didn't have much room between the two of them, if I didn't know any better I'd say they did that on purpose. It seemed like Sasami had already gotten my plate of food ready for me; and boy was there a lot of food. Not that I'm complaining or anything considering that I haven't eaten in however long it's been, but I hope she doesn't mind if I can't find myself to eat all of this rice. The shit fills you pretty fast after all.

I looked across the table, "Sasami, thanks for getting my plate for me."

Sasami looked up from her own meal and greeted me with a warm smile, "Oh it's nothing, you're a guest here; do you have enough to eat?"

"Uh..." I looked down at the massive spread of food in front of me, "Yeah I think this will do for round one," I said jokingly.

Alright well, where do I even begin? I know I've seen this food presentation somewhere, but of course my stupid self can't remember. Let's see, I've got a bowl of rice on the left side, some pickled vegetables directly above that, some grilled fish at the very top with some soupy looking liquid on the right. They all looked so ridiculously inviting. I took the chopsticks lying in front of me and tried placing them in my hand. Oh god that's so awkward, someone needs to give me a spoon and fork before I end up hurting myself.

Ayeka looked over at me and my never ending struggle to hold the chopsticks correctly in my hand, "Justin, do you need some help with those?" She said with a slight giggle.

"No no no, I got this. Just give me a second I'll figure it out," I replied.

Washu took a sip of her green tea and turned my way, "She's saying you have terrible manners."

"Miss Washu!" Ayeka gasped.

Washu started to laugh, almost hysterically. She's definitely quite the joker isn't she? "Yeah yeah I know I'm socially awkward and a bit of a goof right now," I said between the two of them, "just give me a day and I'll get back into the swing of things."

There we go! The chopsticks were now successfully positioned in my right hand; the only problem was picking up all of this rice. I looked around the table to observe how the others were handling their breakfast. Ayeka was eating her food extremely carefully, almost like the food needed tender and loving care. Okay, there's no way I'm eating it like _that_. Washu on my right side was already done with her rice and working on her soup. Sasami was eating the fish on her side of the table; Kiyone was sipping on her tea and Mihoshi…holy shit. Five, no…six empty rice bowls sat in front of Mihoshi, with the seventh held up to her face while she shoveled the rice into her mouth with the chopsticks. What an animal. I honestly can't compete with that. That's fine though, it's not like she's going to come over to my side of the table and start taking my food; at least I hope she doesn't start doing that. I picked up the bowl of rice and started scooping portions of it into my mouth. Delicious. It felt fantastic to finally get some nutrients back into my system. Let's just hope I'll be able to tackle the rest of the food as successfully.

Kiyone turned her attention my way, "So Justin, I'm curious…do you know exactly why you can't seem to remember anything? It just seems so odd considering you still have a personality."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Well let's see. You know your name, you have a sense of humor and it looks like your common sense stuck with you as well. But other than that, you can't remember anything from your past?"

"Yeah, I guess you could say that. I can still distinguish shapes and objects and all that other fun stuff, but if you ask me to remember something specifically connected with my past nothing rings a bell," I responded.

Washu put her soup down to join in on the conversation, "It's actually quite impressive that Justin is acting the way he is considering the circumstances. Any other person would have probably lost their mind by now, well figuratively speaking at least."

"Well it's still early for me; anything could happen in the next day." I responded comically.

"There's still something that's been bugging me though," Washu paused, "This déjà vu that you claim to have, it doesn't add up."

"Déjà vu? What does she mean Justin?" Ayeka asked.

"Okay well…" I took a sip of some tea to clear my mouth of food, "I feel like I've been here before…to put it lightly." Everyone's faces were suddenly covered in perplexed looks; it appears that the dramatic pause did its job. I could feel their desire for me to continue. "I wish I could somehow help you all understand what I mean, because right now I can't really articulate into words exactly what I'm feeling. But imagine yourself feeling like everything you touch and feel around you have some significant meaning, to a memory that's long been stripped from your very being. I'm not trying to sound too dramatic but that's basically what I feel about this entire house right now, and that's including all of you as well."

"But you've never been here before." Kiyone said.

"That's right. Well…I assume that I haven't." I replied with a nod.

"You know, I have that feeling sometimes as well!" Mihoshi randomly interjected.

"You do?" I said puzzled.

Mihoshi nodded, "Yep sometimes I'll be doing something and then completely forget where I am or what I was doing." Wow. That wasn't at all relevant.

"Just…ignore my partner," Kiyone said slightly embarrassed, "She isn't completely there at times."

"That must be a maddening feeling to have," Ayeka said, her face looked somewhat gloomy over the thought, "I can't imagine ever going through something like that."

Maddening? That's putting it mildly I'd say. I've had to talk myself down from going crazy so many times now, even THAT is becoming somewhat 'maddening.' "Yeah well, I'm hoping Washu will be able to help me solve that little problem of mine. After seeing her lab I can say I'm confident in her abilities."

I noticed Washu crack a smile, "Well what do you expect from the universe's greatest scientific genius?"

I looked at her with a grin, "Is that a self-proclaimed title?"

"Not even." She said, shooting me a look.

I laughed at her response, "Fair enough."

I looked back over at Kiyone, "So Kiyone, you said that Mihoshi is your partner? I can only imagine you mean in some type of job relationship and not…any other kind right?"

Kiyone was thrown off by my sexually undertoned comment. "Uh, yeah she's my partner in terms of our job together. We're both employees for the Galaxy Police."

"Galaxy Police?" I asked with a raised eyebrow.

"That's right," Kiyone responded with a smile, "The Galaxy Police is responsible for maintaining order throughout the Milky Way. Mihoshi and I were just about to be promoted to detective class officers until this numbskull here ruined it for the both of us – and now we live here, trying to pick up the pieces to get our lives back together."

This was a little confusing for me to understand, "Wait, so Earth has a Galaxy Police force? Since when?"

Kiyone looked at me quizzically, "No, the Galaxy Police Force has no connection with Earth at all. This planet is actually considered a no fly zone for all officers."

"So where exactly is your headquarters then?" I replied.

Kiyone pointed up towards the ceiling, "Space."

I looked at her with a blank face, "Space?"

"Yeah, that's right."

I needed a second to think about that one, "So where are you from…Space?"

Kiyone nodded.

"Uh-huh," I murdered rhetorically.

Washu butted in once again, "Justin, no offense but this may be a little over your head in your current state. But the people of Earth don't exactly know about _us._"

"Please elaborate," I said, holding my fingers up to my chin.

"We're aliens." Washu responded with a straight face.

"Aliens…"

"Well technically speaking yes, we're aliens because we aren't from this planet. Every one of us here at the table is an alien." Washu replied.

I blinked a few times, trying to process what Washu had just said. Okay this is definitely news to me, but my brain honestly isn't sure how to respond. "I guess that would make sense, so at this point I'll just go along with it until I have time to figure it out later. So…is there anyone around here that _isn't_ an alien?"

Washu looked around the table, "If you want to get super technical: no, there isn't. But Tenchi and Nobuyuki are probably the closest things to Earthlings you're going to get around here."

"Who's Tenchi?" I asked Washu.

"He's Nobuyuki's son. The reason you haven't seen him here is because he's currently attending his first year of college," Washu replied.

"So is there anyone else around here that I don't know about?"

"Well, there's Katsuhito that lives in the shrine up the mountain, and then of course the fun and lovable Ryoko who's probably still asleep upstairs. Katsuhito is Tenchi's grandfather, and Ryoko is," Washu paused, "…my daughter."

Wow. I didn't realize Washu was a mother. "Do you think I'll be able to meet either of them today?"

Washu laughed, "If you want to walk all the way up the mountain, sure you can go see Katsuhito. And if you want to wait until later this afternoon for Ryoko to finally wake up, you can meet her as well."

Ryoko? The name definitely meant something for me. "I take it waking her up now would be a bad idea?"

"Yes, like waking up a sleeping bear during its hibernation." Ayeka said with a snide tone. I don't know why, but I didn't really appreciate that random comment from her. It seemed unnecessary.

Sasami looked up from her food and over at me, "So, do you have an idea of what you're going to do?"

"I don't really know," I replied, "Right now I figure I'll just wait until my memory starts to come back and see where I can go from there. But I mean, if I'm in a different place entirely – a different universe even – how will I get back? Can I get back? That's where Washu comes in."

A large grin swept across Washu's face from my compliment, "Trust me, we'll get you back to your world in no time. Until then, I'm going to convince Nobuyuki to let you stay here. There isn't a room in the house that you can sleep in at the moment, so I hope you enjoy doors that lead into other dimensions.

"If it's anything like your lab then there shouldn't be a problem," I said. It was easy to tell by Washu's expression that she was satisfied with my response.

"I must say that you're handling all of this quite well," Ayeka said.

I looked over at her, "Yeah well deep down inside I'm probably screaming at the top of my lungs and going into a massive panic att-" Something suddenly felt wrong. I could feel my body being thrown off of its equilibrium. I squinted my eyes to try and focus them, but to no avail. My head began pounding.

"Are you okay?" Sasami asked, sensing that something was off.

"I…I don't know…does anyone else feel that?" I said. I put my hand over my head, trying to discern just what exactly was going on.

"Feel what?" Ayeka asked.

Heaviness. Nausea. Vertigo. What was it exactly? It was painfully similar to what I experienced when I first woke up on the hardwood floor. I closed my eyes and tried to concentrate, something was deep inside my conscious trying to communicate with me. A presence? What was it? Could it be a memory? Not even a few seconds later it was gone without a trace.

I took my hand away from my forehead, "Hell if I know. But I think it's gone now." That was strange and highly unexpected. The sensation sent a cold sweat down my entire body and I could feel my throat drying up. Everyone at the table was looking at me, but I wasn't sure if I could say anything to ease their troubled minds.

"Justin," Washu said after a few seconds of silence, "I think we're going to have to cut breakfast a little short and get you into the lab this instant. We need to figure out what that was just now while it's still fresh."

"Yeah, I'll think you're right. Sasami, I promise I'll be back for this food later so it doesn't go to waste, okay?"

She looked at me what that innocent smile and simply said, "Okay." It was easy to see that she was concerned for my well-being. Why would she care for a complete stranger though? Perhaps she has always been this compassionate, almost the polar opposite from her sister.

Washu got out of her chair and started making her way to the closet door in the living room. I got up as well and followed closely behind her. I took a glance behind me, sure enough the rest were still watching, their faces filled with curiosity. I'd be the same in their situation. It's not every day a complete stranger from the future, with amnesia mind you, just randomly shows up at your house and all of a sudden becomes the center of attention. In no way I'm I asking to be the center of attention; I just want to remember who I am, but most importantly why I'm here.

By the time I turned around Washu already had the door to the lab opened, she was waiting on me to enter first. Without saying anything I stepped back through the portal that lead into her domain of raw imagination – turned into reality. Once my eyes had adjusted to the bright light, I noticed that her lab had taken on a whole different feel than before. Was this a different portion of it altogether? Hundreds of holographic displays danced above my head in synchronous orbits around the empty volume. Each monitor was churning out terabytes of processed information, parsing each piece of data from one monitor to the next in a continuous loop. I couldn't help but look at the elaborate charts, diagrams and super complex mathematical calculations being done at what seemed like light speed. What could Washu be working on? What could she be searching for? What was the purpose behind all of this work?

Washu closed the door behind me, "Still staring at the pretty colors, huh?"

Realizing that I was indeed, drooling a bit, I looked over at Washu, "I'm just having a hard time figuring out the reason behind this elaborate set up."

Washu joined me in observing her own creation, "I've had these computers running for three straight years at full capacity, and I'm still not even close to finding the answers I'm looking for."

"Where are the actual computers?"

"I keep them inside a cold vacuum to prevent overheating. What you see up here are just user interfaces that feed me real time updates from the computers. This entire lab is designed to be completely wireless and fully interfaced. I wouldn't have it any other way."

"So…how do you even power all of this?"

"Would you believe me if I told you it was through a pocket-sized form of nuclear fusion?"

"Totally believable." I said, bobbing my head.

Washu walked over to her chair and hopped into it, "Anyway, the reason I asked you in here earlier was to dig a little deeper into your situation. What looked simply like quantum tunneling at first may very well be something more complex than you and I can understand right now. And I'm sure you have a plethora of questions you want to ask me."

I turned her way; Washu was flying through lines and lines of systems reports, "Right, where do I even begin?"

She wiped her hand in front of her and a few seconds later a keyboard manifested itself, "Well, let's start with the basics. Empty your pockets. We're going to do some basic scientific observation with deductive reasoning."

Washu tapped a button on her keyboard and a floating circular platform started to construct itself in front of me. She never ceases to amaze me with the technological capabilities of this lab. I reached into both of my pockets and pulled out all of their contents: my cellphone wrapped in my headphones, a pack of Stride spearmint gum and a set of car keys. I then reached into my back right pocket and pulled out my wallet, which contained about three hundred U.S. dollars and my driver's license. Once I was done the table floated its way towards Washu.

"I tried earlier this morning several times, but I couldn't get my phone to work." I said.

Washu picked up the BlackBerry and began looking at it with intense curiosity, "Do you have an idea why it won't work?"

"Another result of quantum tunneling?" I said ignorantly.

"Not exactly," Washu said cryptically. She begun to take the phone apart, revealing the circuitry within.

"Do you think you can access the memory on it?" I said as soon as the thought emerged.

Washu let out a small laugh, "That's actually what I'm about to do. For our first test, we're going to see how well your mind responds to psychological and emotional connections with your past. If I didn't know any better I'd say that you have tons of personal data revealing all kinds of information about who you are. We're going to see if what I find will trigger any mental response from you."

"And what if that doesn't work?" I said shrugging my shoulders.

"Then we'll keep testing!" she stated bluntly.

Two identical spheres, much like the ones that scanned my body earlier, descended down from the ceiling and made their way towards Washu. They took a curious liking to my BlackBerry, almost as if they had a slight intelligence of their own. Washu pressed another button on her keyboard, and the orbs began to scan my device. Another click, and a monitor revealed itself in front of both Washu and I.

"This might take a while," Washu said, "considering this technology doesn't exist on Earth yet."

"Does it exist anywhere else in the universe?"

"Yes and no," Washu paused to look over my phone again, "Yes because we already have a very advanced form of knowledge similar to this, but it was derived from different means. No because our universal timeline took a different evolutionary turn altogether in terms of life and technological advancement."

Another universe altogether? I guess that answers one question then, "So do you think this is a parallel universe to mine, or something completely different?"

Washu went to work on her keyboard once more to complete the data transfer, "I can't be sure simply because I don't know which actual universe you came from. More importantly, I'm having a hard time telling at this point if your material composition is even compatible with this universe yet. Right now you seem to be stable."

"Stable?" I asked.

"In other words, your body isn't trying to reassemble itself over and over to try and compensate for universal differences in atomic arrangements," she responded.

The thought was somewhat unsettling, and Washu could see my discontent. "I'm sorry," she sighed, "I didn't mean to worry you."

"No problem," I reassured her, "it's probably best that I know these things anyway." Deep down the thought of my body "reconstructing" itself terrified me.

She smiled back at me, "Thanks for being so understanding, now let's take a look at what's on your phone."

Washu swiveled her chair towards the monitor in front of us and pressed another key. A series of files popped up on the screen, all sorted by format and categorized in terms of file size. She went to the section labeled "pictures" and pulled up the first photo on the list.

"Recognize anything?" Washu said as she studied the picture.

"No," I said being completely honest, "I can tell that's a picture of me and some other people, but I don't ever remember having the picture taken."

Washu went to the next picture, "What about now?"

I shook my head.

She let out a sigh, "Well, then prepare yourself because we're going through all of these."

Fifty seven pictures later and I was still drawing blanks, I could make basic connections with each picture, but in terms of memory nothing was coming to mind. I could easily tell that I was the person in each picture, but that's just because of my self-awareness. Beyond that, I had no idea who I was in those pictures, and as we went through each picture I could feel the anxiety and frustration building up inside of me. The only links to my past were the clothes on my back and the contents on the table in front of me. Both of us sat there in deep contemplation, but something didn't quite add up in my head. Washu told me this morning that due to quantum tunneling, I couldn't remember some things. However, that effect would eventually wear off. So why was she trying to stimulate my mind with pictures from my past? It seemed rather counter-productive, and I knew that Washu knew better than that.

"Washu…" I said in a low tone.

"Yes?" She hesitated, possibly sensing my upcoming question.

"What's the point to all of this? You told me earlier that it would take time for my memory to return. So why are we going through with these trivial tests?" There was an obvious distressed pitch to my voice, but I couldn't help it.

"I know…."she said pausing for a second. Washu leaned back into her chair and starting rubbing her eyes, perhaps what she had to say wouldn't be said very easily. I stared at her while she gathered the courage to tell me what was on her mind.

After some silence Washu finally looked back up at me, "You see those monitors up there?"

"Yes," I responded, not sure where she was going with this.

"Earlier this morning, when I asked you to step back into the lab after breakfast, I had gotten a message from my computer saying that it completed the scan that I had done on you. On one of those monitors are the results of that scan."

"So what did the scan reveal?" I asked.

"The scan was inconclusive." She said coldly.

"Meaning?"

"It means, at least technically speaking, that you don't exist."

The words twisted my stomach in a terrible contortion, "But I'm right here," I said merely choking on my words. Should I laugh or cry at my disbelief of her last sentence?

"I know…" she responded, barely able to look me in the eye.

"Where are my memories then?" I said, getting a little hysterical.

Washu took her index finger and pointed straight towards her forehead, "They're exactly where they should be."

I shook my head, "In my brain? Then why the hell can't I remember anything!" At this point I just wanted to scream.

"That's what I'm trying to figure out, and that's what these 'tests' are for." She said.

"Washu, you're not making any sense!" I screamed, feeling my vocal chords straining.

Washu jumped out of her chair and glared right at me, "Look who's talking! Nothing about YOU makes any sense!" She stopped to regain her composure, closed her eyes and dropped her head towards the ground, her hands in a tight fist. "Quantum tunneling accounts for how you got here, but it doesn't even begin to explain anything else about you."

I sat there, soaking in her condescending words.

"And not even my instruments can begin to understand you." She said finally looking up at me, "You're different."

Her words cut right through me, but I couldn't find myself to yell at her any longer. I knew this was equally frustrating for the both of us.

"So how exactly am I _different_?" I said, remorse overshadowing my words.

"The simple fact that you survived the journey here is enough," The scientist replied, "And now I've got to figure out why you can't access your memories."

I stared at her with colorless eyes; I couldn't help it, rage swept through my very essence even though I knew better. "And let me guess," I said sarcastically, "you're so agitated because the greatest mind in the universe can't solve a problem?"

Washu's eyes lit up with fire, "And so what if it is! Or perhaps it's because I see a genuine person in front of me who is in need of my help, someone who just _might_ be the answer I've been looking for!"

She caught herself, realizing that she just said something that she would soon regret. Could it have anything to do with what she mentioned earlier?

I exhaled deeply and swept my fingers through my hair. I needed to stop our acts of aggression towards each other quickly; neither of us needed to be so hot headed right now.

"Washu, you're right," I finally said, revealing subtle regret in my voice, "I'm sorry." It was important for me to take the total blame here, it would not only ease tension between us but it would open the floor for later conversations.

"No," she replied, "I should be the one who apologizes. I deliberately hid information from you, and of course I know that's not right, but please try to understand that I'm not sure what will happen if I'm fully open with you right now. You're stable for the time being, but any kind of emotional event could trigger something deep inside you."

Her words felt so sincere, I felt awful for having acted out against her. Even though she lied to me, her actions were justified and I'd probably do the same in her situation. Her last statement reminded me of the small episode earlier during breakfast. What could she mean though?

"And because you don't know what would trigger such a thing…" I said rhetorically, "you wanted to be as careful as possible."

Washu nodded, her eyes returning to their gentle state. I can see it clearly now, she has the eyes of a caring mother, as well as the actions. She was acting on both maternal and scientific viewpoints. A perfect balance between logic and emotion, if only I could have seen it sooner.

"Now," Washu said as she sat back in her chair, "if it's okay with you…would you like to continue searching for the answer? _Your _answer?"

I felt as if my entire body smiled at her. "Of course, whatever you need Washu." She returned my smile with a warm one of her own. I'm glad that situation was turned around and we reached a mutual understanding, the last thing I need to be on bad terms with the people here.

"I honestly thought that pictures would be the best route to go, but you didn't respond to really any of them, did you?" Washu said while navigating the monitor in front of her.

I shrugged my shoulders, "No, I guess not."

She pulled up another folder, this one labeled music. "Alright, let's see if music will serve as proper stimuli."

Washu starting browsing through the selection of music, while she was doing that I walked over to the table and picked up my wallet. Upon opening it I pulled out my driver's license and studied it. "Born Christmas of 91'," I said, "Hell at least I can still remember my name and age."

Washu looked over at me, "A nineteen year old from the year 2011, traveling through several universal dimensions and astonishingly entering a new one – alive – in the past of all things. Quite the résumé if you ask me."

"Yeah, quite a culture shock isn't it?" I said.

"Indeed," she replied, "Here, choose a song at random for me. Choose five songs altogether."

"Another test?" I asked.

"Sort of. The five songs you chose will help me put together a decently accurate personality report on you."

"How would that even be accurate? I'm choosing these songs at random without knowing any of them."

Washu began scratching her nose, "I have a hunch that the songs you choose will actually be your subconscious communicating with you, even through the current memory barrier."

She sounded confident in her prediction, "Alright let's do it," I said eagerly.

Washu got back out of her chair and walked up next to me, "The monitor in front of you is fully interactive, just treat it like you would a touch screen."

I walked in front of the monitor and began surfing through the massive collection of songs. Without any form of context to go on, I wasn't exactly sure which songs were the right choice, or if there even was a right choice. I guess the idea that the songs I pick will reveal something about my personality made me a little anxious. After about a minute of cruising through each song, artist and album – I finally had five songs chosen.

"Well, there you go," I said stepping away from the monitor.

"Right, well let's have a listen then."

Washu selected the first song titled, "Murmaider II: The Water God," and hit play. An incredibly eerie sound echoed through the lab, followed by the thunderous gallop of guitar notes. Washu and I stood there looking at each other, both of us deeply confused by what we were hearing. For me at least, the music was incredibly aggressive but enchanting and calming at the same time. Washu on the other hand didn't really seem to be enjoying it all that much.

Washu stopped the music about a minute into it, "Next song," she said with haste.

Washu played and listened to the next four songs: Holy Diver, The Root of All Evil, Blood Brothers and finally Tank. After the fifth song was done Washu sat in her chair, deep in thought.

She took her hand off of her chin, "Well, that's certainly interesting."

"Yeah." I said in agreement.

"My first impression would be that you have such a well-rounded personality that there isn't a way to just 'label' you based on your preferences. It makes the whole situation much more complicated, but at the same time it should give you some optimism knowing that you're so developed as a person."

"Thanks," I said with a laugh, "Isn't there something else you can do – like poke around in my brain or something? I mean just look at this place, you can't tell me that the possibilities are actually endless, right?"

Washu started navigating the monitors in front of her again, "I'm not saying it's impossible, but I'm not saying it's easy even for somewhat like me. It will take time to do it, and do it right. Huh? What's this…?" Washu looked at the screen with squinted eyes.

"What's what?" I asked.

"I was looking through some more recovered data from your phone. It's a saved GPS location. And do you know what it's called?" She replied, looking at me with a sly smile.

The way she worded her question shot a considerable amount of interest throughout my mind. "I have no honest idea," I finally said.

Washu paused for dramatic effect, "Home."

_Home: _Finally something that had considerable meaning to me.

"If there is one place that could trigger anything, it would definitely be your home. However," Washu said changing her tone, "be aware that because of where you are - what universe you're in – that his "home" of yours may not even exist."

"Just like me…" I said, laughing to myself, "Well Washu….it's wortha shot isn't it?"

She gave me a reassuring nod, "It is."

"Then do it, please. Find out where my home is."

"This might take a minute; Earth doesn't have the infrastructure for accurate GPS locations yet."

"Then how will you find my house?" I asked with curiosity.

"Well, like I said, Earth doesn't have the technology yet. They also don't have strong enough firewalls on their satellites to protect them from geniuses like me," She replied with a snicker.

The monitor in front of me grew until it was nearly the size of a chalkboard. A satellite representation of Earth digitized itself into plain view. "Oh god, don't tell me this is real time." I said once I realized that Washu had already hacked into a satellite.

"Of course it is," She said without hesitation, "Alright, well we know that you're from the United States and based on your driver's license you're also from South Carolina. So that should help us narrow our search.

"Doesn't my phone have the exact coordinate location though?" I asked.

"Unfortunately not, it only gave me an address." Washu replied as she zeroed in on the location of my house.

Through all the excitement this morning I had forgotten that I still had several questions to ask Washu. Things were moving fast for me right now and I was having a tough time keeping up. I was no longer in control of my life; instead I was leaving it all in the hands of this redhead sitting in front of me. Honestly though, I probably wouldn't ever find someone as capable as Washu in my given situation. I couldn't help but smile knowing that of all the shit that I'm going through, she's the one who would go through it with me.

Washu stopped for a moment and stared at the monitor, "I think I have it," she said.

I turned around and walked towards the monitor to take a look, "How sure are you?" I asked.

"Sure enough to where if I repeated the process again I'd just end up back here."

"Fair enough," I responded with a smirk, "So how will we get there from…where are we exactly?"

"Japan." She quickly answered.

"Of course….that would explain…._everything_," I said, finally realizing how stupid I was for not connecting the dots earlier.

"To answer your first question though: We'll use Ryo-Ohki."

"Ryo-Ohki?"

Washu looked at me, "A small cat-like animal crossbred with a rabbit? Ryo-Ohki spends most of her time with Sasami so you couldn't have missed her."

"Now that you mention it…"I said, thinking back to this morning. Yep, I definitely remember that exact animal resting on Sasami's shoulder earlier.

Hold on…. "So Washu, how exactly is a 'cabbit' going to help us?"

"She transforms into a ship."

"Ah well…," I blinked a few times, "of course that's how we're getting there!"

"Sorry for being so blunt with you," Washu laughed, "I'm just making sure that the United States Government didn't detect my hack into their servers just now. And just in case, I'm erasing any possible traces."

I rested both my hands on my hips and looked around the lab once more, "Yep, best be safe than sorry I suppose."

Washu didn't respond, instead she intensively typed away on her holographic keyboard with hellish speed. I decided to walk around the lab a bit just to pass the time. The monitors still orbited above me and they were still churning out the same pieces of data from before. I tried looking for the monitor that had my scan results on them, but the symbols were moving too fast on each monitor for me to differentiate anything that could relate to me specifically. For a brief moment it seemed like time had finally decided to slow down for me to allow me to think. I took in a deep breath of air and held it in for a few seconds before calmly exhaling. I wonder what happened to me at the breakfast table this morning, what exactly was it that I felt? Could it have been my subconscious trying to kick my brain back into gear? Washu reacted to it, so it must have meant something to her. Maybe she was just waiting on the right time to tell me what it was about.

"Okay," Washu said, cracking her knuckles, "I think we're all set."

I turned around to realize how far I had actually walked from Washu. The lab was filled with so much white light that I honestly couldn't tell if there were any walls, so distance was hard to gauge without some sort of reference.

"I take it you're coming with me? I'm not trained to fly an animal," I joked.

Washu cracked a slight smile from my humor, "Actually I'm not coming with you, there's too much data I need to analyze here and I don't want to make up for lost time."

"Alright then," I said putting my hands in my pockets, "So who will be my pilot for today?"

Washu stopped typing but kept her hands on the keyboard, "Ryoko."

"Ryoko?" I said confused.

"What? Me?" said a voice from behind me.

The new voice in the room completely startled me; I quickly swung around to figure out who it was. Ryoko appeared behind me, floating several feet off of the floor with her legs crossed and her hands behind her head. We locked eye contact and just stared at each other. I wasn't quite sure how to react or what to say, so the two of us just sat there (well…she was floating) in awkward silence. Her hair was wild and untamed; I could only imagine that it somehow suited her personality perfectly. Her eyes? Absolutely mesmerizing. I've never seen such a color before. It didn't take long for me to classify her as a real looker.

"That's right," Washu said, finally breaking the silence, "You're going to fly Justin to the exact coordinates you see on the display in front of you."

"And why the hell would I want to do something like that?" Ryoko replied snidely.

Washu looked up from the keyboard and over at Ryoko and I, "Don't play dumb with me, you've been spying on Justin for the entire time we've been in here."

"Say what?" I interjected. I looked at Ryoko, who turned away the second she noticed me turn my attention towards her. That immediate reaction of hers told me all that I needed to know: she was guilty.

"Washu, why the hell didn't you tell me I had a stalker?" I asked sternly.

Washu looked around, reaching for an answer, "Honestly, it was probably the best way for Ryoko to get to know you before actually getting to know you."

"Ah, perfect then." I replied sarcastically.

"Besides Ryoko," Washu said, "You still owe me a favor since last time, doing this will make us even. Clear?"

Ryoko's face dulled to a frown, "Fine, but only if this makes us even," She looked my way, "C'mon kid, grab your things and follow me." Ryoko floated lazily towards the lab's exit.

I made my way back to the table with all of my items and began putting them back into their proper place. Washu was still typing away furiously at the keyboard. She might end up breaking a finger if she's not careful.

"Justin," Washu said, still paying most of her attention to her work, "I want you to be careful with what you say around Ryoko, she can be short tempered at times."

"I'll keep that in mind," I replied.

Washu stopped typing again and looked at me, "However, there are also times that she can be just as sweet and compassionate as Sasami – in her own way of course. I want you to try and make Ryoko open up. I think you're charismatic enough to make a solid connection with her. Perhaps sincere dialogue between the two of you will be beneficial for both parties." There it was again, that maternal instinct Washu had shown me earlier. She really was Ryoko's mother, I could somehow tell.

"Is this a favor of yours, Washu?" I asked smiling.

Washu smiled as well, "Yes. Do this and consider things even between us two. I'll continue helping you out and you'll continue doing what you do best."

"Oh please, you know you're helping me because I'm so damned interesting to you," I said joking once more.

Washu laughed, "Go. You don't want to keep Ryoko waiting. Don't worry about your phone, I'll keep it safe here and keep studying it."

I nodded at Washu. She pressed a button on her keyboard and a door revealed itself directly to my right. I looked at it, and saw behind the threshold the living room back to the Masaki House. I turned and started making my way towards the door. The monitors above me were still dancing in their beautifully choreographed orbit, data was still being processed, and I still didn't have a clue what any of them were saying. I walked through the door and let my eyes adjust to the lighting change. Ryoko awaited me at the front door, her attire changed to a black and red skin tight uniform. On her shoulder sat Ryo-Ohki, who now looked at me with less fear and more curiosity.

Ryoko stared at me, "Ready kid?"

I nodded in reply, "Let's do it."

Ryoko…if only I knew what significance your name held…if only I could remember…


	3. Chapter 3: Ryoko

Author's Notes:

[Content Warning]: This chapter contains constant profanity, so if you don't care for that stuff…sorry!

Also, this is the longest so far out of the three chapters, weighing in at just over 11,000 words. So when/if you read this, make sure you 1) Have patience 2) Love reading and 3) Have plenty of time to spare.

Make sure to check out my profile for information on how to contact me outside of !

I apologize in advance for typos and sentence structure weirdness, I had three people review this before publishing, so hopefully everything is all well.

* * *

><p>Chapter Three<p>

"Ryoko"

Ryo-ohki meowed with excitement, staring down almost every bird that lightly dotted the sky.

"So eager are we?" Ryoko asked the cat-like animal, "Very well then."

The wild haired woman in front of me took Ryo-ohki and launched her straight into the air with minimal effort. My hand reached towards the cabbit instinctively, my body asking why Ryoko had just sent her pet airborne. I starred at Ryo-ohki as she gained more altitude; I was at a complete loss at what was going on. I blinked once, and right before my eyes Ryo-ohki's body started an amazing metamorphosis. Before I knew it a four winged ship hovered several hundred feet above me with Ryo-ohki's exact color scheme. In the center of the ship rested a ruby colored sphere, something told me that was the cockpit, as well as Ryo-ohki's centralized intelligence.

Ryoko took a few steps forward until she was positioned under Ryo-ohki's shadow, "No sudden movements," she said while looking straight up.

With marginal warning I was lifted directly into the air, the familiar feeling of butterflies starting tickling the inside of my stomach. I felt like the negative end of a magnet being attracted to the positive end; every hair on my head was tingling at the scalp. I carefully looked up and noticed a white beam of light originating from the bottom of Ryo-ohki's fuselage. Am I even allowed to use aircraft terminology with organic material? The very thought was intriguing in itself. The white light intensified and I could feel the inertia propelling my body into the ship.

When I opened my eyes I saw Ryoko standing in the middle of the room, her hands situated on two floating metallic orbs. Between the two, remained a stationary third orb that was slightly larger than the other two. Below me rested a beautiful onyx floor, the polish was so sharp that there was almost a clear reflection of myself on each individual tile. All around me I could see real time camera feeds of the environment outside, the holographic screens holding steady against the bulbous shaped room. I wonder, were they really cameras, or was Ryo-ohki really seeing all of this with her own eyes? When I looked up I noticed several diamond shaped crystals moving around almost as if they had a mind of their own. That also must be an extension of Ryo-ohki's conscious.

"Washu, you got those coordinates ready?" Ryoko growled.

A few seconds later Washu's voice broke into the room, "Of course, I'm uploading them to you now. And would it hurt to be a little nicer around your guest?"

Ryoko turned at me and shot a deathly stare. It caught me so off guard that my head flinched back a bit from the surprise. The intensity in her eyes seemed unnatural. I didn't even do anything, why put me on her bad side already?

"Can I help you?" I asked sarcastically and for the sake of saying _something._

"I don't trust him…" Ryoko responded, speaking to the both of us.

Washu popped onto one of the monitors behind Ryoko and stared the both of us down. "But I do," she said, "and right now he needs our help. Don't forget about our deal Ryoko."

Ryoko continued staring at me for a few seconds before deciding to turn back around at Washu. "Whatever, but I'm not taking any chances with him. If he shows a single trace of hostility towards my life or anyone else's I will put him down."

"Wonderful, I appreciate the encouragement," I said sarcastically once more. It was probably in my best interest just to keep quiet. The last thing I want is to invoke this girl's wrath. To be honest, I didn't even know where my sarcasm was coming from, and why it was coming out now of all times.

"If you hurt him I'll hook you back up to my machines," Washu retorted coldly, her words feeling genuine even for an outsider like me.

Within an instant Ryoko's facial expression changed to that of a child embellished with fear. "Fine," she finished with a long sigh.

Washu looked past Ryoko and at me, "Justin, I'm still looking through your phone. My programs are currently recovering the corrupted data and I'll try and piece them back together by the time you get back. Also, Ryoko, on your way back stop by Tokyo and find him some clothes. Justin's shoulders are too broad to fit into any of Tenchi's old stuff."

Broad shoulders huh?

"Anything else?" Ryoko added, her voice once again filled with slight annoyance.

"Keep him safe." Washu responded. With that final notion the monitor went black.

Ryoko turned back again to look me over. Her golden eyes were noticeably dilated; personally I wasn't sure what to make of that. There are only two things that make eyes dilate naturally, and that's when you're with someone you love or when you're with someone you hate. I highly doubt she had any positive attraction to me. And yet, someone inside me said she was putting on an act. It was either that, or my instincts got screwed on the ride over here.

"It's going to be a long ride, go ahead and have a seat." She said as she looked back at the forward monitors.

Two black and red chairs, ones of similar design to Washu's chairs, materialized behind Ryoko and me. I took a seat and felt the hovering chair adjust to my weight. Ryoko viewed the monitor in front of her and finally decided to sit down. Upon doing so she crossed her legs as well as her arms and then closed her eyes. If she was putting on the "ignore him" act, she was doing quite a good job, so good that I became convinced that my previous assumption could have been wrong. I could feel the ship accelerating forward, the land around me rolling by on the monitors, no different than what you would see out a car window. I felt incredibly uncomfortable in my newfound silence; Ryoko sure was making this entire ordeal more awkward than it needed to be. Instead of being warm hearted like everyone else I've met this morning, she's the first person to outright admit some form of resentment towards me. And the worst part was that I hadn't the slightest clue as to why. Not to mention that she didn't "trust me," which was something I didn't understand either. The only possible way she could feel like that is because I'm from 'another dimension,' just saying that make me chuckle inside because it was so peculiar.

I leaned back into the chair and observed the clouds sailing by. Washu's final words in the lab were still echoing through my head, reverberating through every crevice in my mind. I didn't question them because they felt so sincere, coming from a parent, and in all respect to Washu I didn't really have a choice in the matter. I was supposed to befriend Ryoko, get her to open up to me…and then what? I was beginning to doubt the integrity of Washu's request, especially considering how bizarre of a request it was. I didn't want to admit it, but I was apprehensive about engaging Ryoko in any sort of social interaction. Her demeanor was that of a defensive introvert, someone who only talked to you if they had good enough reason to. I knew that words alone weren't going to be able to break the ice; I needed to find common ground with her in order to successfully communicate. And that in itself is where all the trouble begins. Who is this person standing in front of me? Are my initial judgments even correct? Just by looking into her golden eyes, I could tell she was burying something so deep that no amount of light could possibly reach it. It only intrigued me the more and more I thought about it. If I was going to engage her in anyway, I'd need a foolproof plan.

The cockpit was airtight; I couldn't even hear any humming of potential moving parts throughout the ship. That is assuming that there are any moving parts. Technically speaking I'm currently sitting inside an animal. Nothing about Ryo-ohki's transformation made sense, let alone how she was managing to fly through the air. I could sit here for the entire flight and question the physics behind it, but in reality it didn't matter for the simple fact that it works. I suppose I'll just learn to accept this like I have everything else, albeit in stride. Out of habit I looked at my watch, only to notice that it was wrong, at least for Japanese Standard Time. That's right, the watch is still on Eastern Standard Time. However, I don't think it accurately reflects the time in this world.

"Ryoko…" I said, leaving the impression that I had more to say.

"What?" she replied monotonously.

"Actually…forget it," time to spark my interest, "Ryo-ohki, can you hear me?"

A drawn out meow rushed through the room. I don't speak cabbit, but that response was all I really needed. Still, it was weird.

"Awesome, can you pull up a global map that details the regional time zones?"

One of the monitors to my left expanded and a map of Earth started loading on the screen. I looked at my watch; the time read 1:34 AM. However, upon looking at the current time for the east coast of the United States the time read 7:01 PM. Japan is thirteen hours ahead of the east coast since daylight savings is still in effect. I had already known that this little trip of mine had taken me back in time so to speak, but I needed to settle just how off synch I was with my own universe. I set my watch to Japan's native time, put it back around my wrist, and latched the locking system. It responded with a satisfying click.

"Thanks Ryo-ohki." I said as I made my way back to the chair.

She responded with a cheerful meow.

I wonder how long it will take me to get used to talking with an animal that actually understands human language. If there was money to bet on, I'd say Washu had something to do with Ryo-ohki. It would make perfect sense after all considering the similarity to Ryoko's own name. Everywhere I looked it seemed that Washu had played a hand in it somehow. Maybe it was a sign, especially since she's my best chance out of here.

"She doesn't work for free you know…" Ryoko said, barely opening her mouth.

"Meaning?" I asked.

"She'll expect something in return." Ryoko responded.

Four of those diamond shaped crystals swept down from above and stopped right in front of me. I could see reflected images within the crystals of Ryo-ohki in her animal form looking at me with beady eyes. She looked like a dog that was expecting a biscuit after you had it perform a talent like barking on command or shaking your hand with their paw. I took a step to the right; the four crystals moved themselves back in front of me almost instantly. So that's how it's going to be.

"I don't have any food if that's what you're expecting." I said while looking into the crystals.

The eyes stared back with a gloomy look, now she was attempting to put a guilt trip on me. "Listen, when we get back I'll be sure to get you something, okay?"

"She likes carrots," Ryoko added once more.

"Thanks," I replied, "Have a change of heart on me all of the sudden?"

"Not even," she said, "but not even you should have to deal with Ryo-ohki and her obsession with carrots. Don't forget your promise to her, or she'll never let you forget."

I stared back into the crystals, "First chance I get you'll have yourself a carrot, okay?"

Ryo-ohki eyes lit up and she responded with another meow. The crystals dispersed from around me and made their way back up to the ceiling where they continued their orbit. By now we were already over the Pacific Ocean, at this rate we'd reach the west coast of America in just under an hour or two. Ryoko was still sitting in her chair; her posture was sending me signals that she didn't want to be bothered. To be honest I was reluctant to even take a step towards her for fear of her gunning me down without second thought. She was fascinating and terrifying at the same time. Why was she making this difficult for me? If she really was putting on some routine, then all I needed to do was push the right buttons, otherwise I'd fail and get skinned alive. There were still a couple hours of flight time left, so it's best not to upset her too early on for the sake of surviving the trip back.

I got out of the chair and started dragging it closer to Ryoko, who seemed to ignore my advancement towards her. One of Ryo-ohki's crystals appeared in my upper-right peripheral vision, almost as if she was getting ready for any potential repercussions. Once I was an arm's length away from Ryoko I sat back into the chair, put my right elbow on my knee, placed my fist under my chin and just stared. If Ryoko was going to make this situation awkward for me, then I feel inclined to make it just as equally awkward for her.

It didn't take long at all before Ryoko opened her left eye and starting staring back, "What the hell do you want?"

I looked at her directly, "I want you to lighten up."

Ryoko opened both of her eyes and swiveled her chair at me, "Who says I'm not?"

"Your complexion tells me all I need to know. You're stressed about something and you're taking it out of me for no good reason," I replied.

"Is that so?" Ryoko responded reluctantly.

"Well to be honest, those are the signals you're sending me right now. I just want to clear the air and figure out why the hell you're acting so damn cynical." I said, trying to sound honest.

"Oh, is that the only reason you're talking to me? Because you can't figure me out? Get fucking real, kid," Ryoko replied distastefully.

"Or maybe it's because I'm genuinely interested in you, ever think of that?" Hmm, that sounded better before it came out of my mouth.

Ryoko looked around the room, like she was searching for a response, "Please, don't try to flatter me."

I couldn't help but laugh at her previous statement, "Oh come on, you think I'm just going to go ahead and give up? I mean hell; why else would you be spying on me unless you didn't have some sort of curiosity of your own?"

Ryoko stirred in her chair a bit and looked away at the monitors.

"While we're on the subject," I said while getting up out of my chair to walk around the room, "why didn't you confront me to begin with, like all the other girls did earlier this morning?"

I felt like I was some defense attorney pacing myself around a courtroom, questioning the suspect under fire. I didn't realize it but the entire time one of Ryo-ohki's crystals had been following me around the room. She must have been interested in what I had to say.

"There's no possible way that you could actually be afraid of me. If anything, I'm the one who should be afraid of you, not the other way around," I continued, still pacing around the room.

"Excuse me?" Ryoko replied. The subtle feminine hostility in her voice quickly made me realize that I had just said something stupid.

"Okay…" I said while holding my hand out in front of my body, "Let me rephrase that. You're an alien…no" God dammit, I might as well through myself into the fire.

Ryoko was now looking at me attentively with both of her golden eyes. They seemed to be…glowing? Was she enjoying this, this little act of hers, this dilemma of mine? Now that it was obvious that I was placing myself in an uncomfortable situation, it looked as if Ryoko was going to take advantage of it. Still, there was a chance I could dig my way out. I just needed to word myself carefully.

I closed my eyes and exhaled to calm my nerves, "Let's start over once more shall we? When I first met you earlier this morning, you were floating, mkay? _Floating._ That in itself is enough to catch anyone off guard and well…humans don't necessarily react well when they see something that supersedes the natural laws of physics that they're used to and…" I stopped myself mid-sentence and placed my hand over my face in shame, "You know what? Nevermind."

Ryoko's demeanor had quickly changed while I was rambling. Instead of closing herself off, she was now laying in her chair as lazy as could be. She looked straight at me without saying a word, a wicked grin sweeping across her face. If she had a gun in her hand, I'd honestly fear for my life.

"What's wrong?" Ryoko asked sarcastically, "breaking under the pressure?"

This woman's mood swings were so far beyond me, "Suuuuure, why not? It might have something to do with the fact that your eyes are glowing. Or maybe it could be that right now you're acting downright scary as hell, and it's making me rather uncomfortable. In fact, I think you're doing all of this out of sheer enjoyment - Why? Damned if I know, maybe you're just bored or something."

Oh god, I was letting her get to me. I immediately stopped talking and just stared at the ceiling, my lips creased shut.

"Hmm?" Ryoko finally said, "My eyes are glowing?" Her tone was so friendly and calm that it almost seemed sadistic for a person like me. She was mocking me, I just know it!

Hold on, this has to be part of her strategy; she's a smart one, I'll give her that. Or maybe I was just dumb for so easily letting her get to me. "Now wait just a damn minute," I said finally gaining back my composure, "answer my original question."

Ryoko tilted her head slightly to the left, "Which one? You just asked like a million questions."

"The first one, smartass," I snapped, slightly irritated now.

"Watch it kid…" Ryoko replied with a vicious tone. Her grin disappeared almost instantly. Is it possible that she's bipolar or something? I can't be stuck in a small space with a woman with personality disorders!

"Sorry, the original question was: why didn't you greet me like all the other girls did this morning, why did you have to wait until we were in Washu's lab?" I asked. I was officially on this woman's leash.

"I have my reasons," Ryoko answered.

"Which are?"

"I'm not obligated to tell you."

My jaw nearly dropped to the floor, after all that effort Ryoko was still taking me for a ride. "You're ridiculous," I said while throwing my hands in the air.

"And you're easy," she responded with a smirk.

"Oh, you think I'm easy? What the hell do you even know about me?" I said with quivering authority.

"I know more than you know about yourself," Ryoko responded.

"Okay that's a low blow, even if it is a lie." She knew that none of this was my fault.

"Is it?"

I couldn't help but flare my nostrils at this entire conversation, "You can stop anytime you want."

Ryoko began to grow a playful smile on her face; her eyes were still lightly glowing for reasons I'll never know why, "Okay, anytime I want."

I rubbed my eyes out of sheer frustration, "You and I both know that that phrase implies for you to STOP."

Ryoko simply giggled. She was still managing to get to me, no matter what I said in this mucked up conversation. Regardless of how I tried to reach her, she seemed to deploy any means necessary to avoid all of my questions entirely. It only told me that she was scared, or rather unwilling to reveal any kind of personal information. However, the way that she went about dodging the issue was so strange and so damned annoying. She was easily making me more stressed out than I needed to be.

Within seconds I realized that the best way to end this conversation was to just stop talking entirely. I walked back over to my chair and threw myself into it. Based on the map that was showing up on the screen in front of me, we were now flying over the great plains of the U.S., so we'd be arriving very shortly. It seemed as if Ryo-ohki had the ability to fly at incredible speeds. And let me guess, her source of fuel is – carrots. That'll be the day, when the United States starts making biofuel using carrots. Hmm, perhaps I should stay in this universe and invest in that market while it's still untapped. Out of my peripheral I could see Ryoko making crude faces at me. Nope, I'm not going to give in to her game. If I make any negative remark towards her actions then I'll be doing exactly what she wants me to.

Before I knew it she leaned in closer to me. Like a gullible son of a bitch I looked at her and awaited the inevitable.

"Yes ma'am?" I said with a sarcastic smirk.

Ryoko smiled and tilted her head, "I want you to lighten up."

You could have heard a pin drop – and then – I lost it.

I jumped out my chair and started pacing around the room again, "Oh isn't this just fucking fantastic? Here I am stuck inside of an animal with a sadistic lunatic who feels the need to push me over the psychological edge. Why me? What the hell is your problem lady? You are some kind of _demon_ you know that?"

When I turned around Ryoko was standing directly behind me, her face was stern and emotionless. "First of all," she said, "don't ever call me a lunatic. And second? Don't ever call me a demon again. If you want to know anything about me, you're going to have to earn it, kid. Not by trying to take wild guesses about my 'complexion' or any of that other shit you're trying to pull. Now go sit down…and lighten up."

I couldn't help but stare at her, analyzing every motionless muscle in her face. I knew she was serious, more serious then she's been for this entire flight. It felt like my blood was freezing over.

"Fair enough," was all my dry throat could muster up to say to her.

The both of us walked together back to our appropriate chairs. We sat back down and remained completely silent. This was the awkward silence that I was trying so hard to avoid. I guess my ability to smooth talk people can only go so far. Either that or I had finally met my match with Ryoko. She was definitely a person who didn't put up with anyone's bullshit; that much I could already tell. Yet everything else about her remained a total mystery. I'm pretty sure at this point that I was doing the exact opposite of what Washu had requested of me. I couldn't help it though; this woman just wouldn't allow me to construct my thoughts logically. It's almost as if she really did know who I was better than myself.

I crossed my arms and looked at Ryoko who had her eyes closed again, "You really bring out the worst in me, you know that?"

"And how would you know that?" She replied without hesitation.

"Dammit Ryoko…" I said with a long sigh, "You know what? I'm sorry."

"Sorry for what?" she answered, almost sounding concerned.

"I don't know why, but it's just so easy for me to butt heads with you. Honestly it feels like I've been around you, or at least people like you, all my life. And this little episode between us just reminded me that I can't remember a damn thing about myself. It's annoying to look at you and feel like I know you, but I don't at the same time. It's maddening and I guess it has put me on edge."

"Sound like you need a stiff drink," Ryoko suggested.

"Yeah, you're probably right," I said smiling, "If only I could remember what my favorite liquor was. That is…assuming I even drink."

"That's enough," Ryoko said, finally opening her eyes again, "I can only tolerate so much sappiness from people before I have to draw the line."

I laughed at her remark. I guess she wasn't too keen on my personal problems. It was either that, she wasn't in the mood to hear it, or that she was saving me from my own depression. She was still impossible for me to read.

Ryoko looked my way and let out a gentle smile, "You know, I haven't had that much fun in quite some time. For a person who lost their memory you sure filled with some character."

So she WAS playing with me this entire time. I should have known. Honestly though, I couldn't find myself to be mad at her, "Yeah well, you're an interesting character yourself."

Ryoko crossed her arms and leaned her head back a bit, "So, what do you think of everyone else?"

"You mean what's my take on them?" I asked.

"Of course," Ryoko answered, "I want to see if you are even close to knowing who they are since you claim to be able to read people."

"Well for starters I never claimed to be able to read people, it's just something I'm able to pick up on." I responded.

Ryoko instantly laughed, "And what the hell is the difference?"

She was right, there really wasn't a difference. I reclined into my chair, "Alright, where to begin? Sasami is pretty much the bread and butter of the household, she basically takes care of all the tasks that no one else seems capable of handling. She seems to have an uncanny ability at not only feeding all of you day in and day out, but at the same time she never complains about it once. Which actually bothers me, because for all we know she could just be bottling up that frustration inside; and that isn't healthy for someone her age. Speaking of which, how old is Sasami?"

Ryoko shrugged, "Hell if I know, I never bothered to ask."

"Hmm, the only reason I'm so curious is because Washu told me earlier that all of you are aliens."

"Aliens?" Ryoko laughed, "Sure I guess you could say that."

I looked at Ryoko perplexed, "So are you insinuating you aren't an alien? I mean you said nothing earlier when I mentioned it."

Ryoko crossed her arms, "Just go on with your 'analysis.'"

Dodging the issue was a sign; Ryoko clearly has something she wants to hide deep down. "Alright fine, maybe another time. Anyway, Washu is an interesting case in of itself," I paused to observe Ryoko's reaction to her mother's name, however she didn't even seem to flinch, "Her laboratory is something so far beyond that of my own understanding that I can't help but to marvel at it every time I step in it. To be honest I've got a ton of respect for her, maybe because of how much she's managed to help me already. Personality wise? She likes to be alone with her research, avoiding social interaction until it's necessary…much like you it would seem."

"There you go again, assuming you know stuff about me," Ryoko replied.

"I'll figure you out eventually," I said with a smirk, "Then there's the two partners Kiyone and Mihoshi. Holy hell what a polar opposite team they seem like. Mihoshi is a ditz with a bottomless pit for a stomach. Regardless of her room temperature intelligence, she still finds happiness through the simplicity of her life. But just like normal people she also experiences frustration and apprehension. Kiyone on the other hand is a very intelligent woman, who feels like Mihoshi is anchoring her down to the bottom of an ocean somewhere. That's not to say that Kiyone dislikes Mihoshi, but she feels like she'd be far better off without her. I imagine it's because Kiyone feels like she'd finally advance in the Galaxy Police without Mihoshi."

"I swear those two are hopeless," Ryoko added.

I simply shrugged my shoulders. "And then….there's _Ayeka_."

Ryoko's eyes quickly looked at me; I could tell they were craving me to continue, "From the moment I met her there was something about her that I just didn't trust. Don't get me wrong, she can be a nice girl, but it seems to me she's that way only when she sees it as mutually beneficial between both parties. When she doesn't get her way, I can only speculate that she will take things out of hand until she reaches some sort of satisfaction from her previous dismay."

Ryoko cracked a smile. It was subtle, but still noticeable. "Oh yeah? And how do you figure that?"

"This morning when we were eating breakfast together, she made a distasteful remark towards you. Even though I hadn't met you yet, the comment didn't settle well with me regardless. I'm trying to figure out why exactly."

Ryoko slapped her hand over her face and let out a huge laugh, "Oh man, it must be real bad if you don't even know the Princess and she still had that effect on you."

"Ayeka's a princess?" I said surprised.

"Kid, you don't even know the half of it. That bitch throws a tantrum anytime she doesn't get what she wants. And I always get the worst end of it too, "Ryoko replied, her face now lit up with enthusiasm.

"So is that why you weren't at breakfast this morning? So you wouldn't have to be around her?" I asked.

"No, the reason is because I don't eat breakfast. I usually prefer to sleep straight through it," she replied.

"Okay then, I suppose that makes enough sense."

Of course it seemed to me that there was more to her story. At the same time, however, I couldn't be totally sure. After all, this bitch is crazy, and crazy bitches are often unpredictable. In all honesty, I think she's a good person down to the core; she's just a little misguided. Ryo-ohki started meowing again, a series of crystals floating down from above and making their way towards Ryoko.

Ryoko looked at the monitors and then back at me, "Looks like we're here."

"Seriously?" I asked in disbelief. Time flies I suppose.

I looked at the forward monitors; both the X and Y coordinates were reaching the zero-point origin at rapid speed. The computer predicted that we had less than thirty seconds before making it to our destination.

Ryoko walked onto the center platform in the room, "Come stand next to me."

I did as she asked and walked over to the platform as well, "What should we expect to find?"

"I'm not sure, so just be on your guard just in case," she answered.

Well, it's not like I'm a mixed martial arts expert or anything, hell I don't even have a gun, "Well it's not like there should be a warzone down there or anything."

Ryoko ignored my comment, "Ryo-ohki, stay up here and keep a lookout around us. Stay invisible."

Ryo-ohki meowed once again, and an instant later the same bright light consumed Ryoko and I; except this time I could feel my body descending. When the light faded we were down on the ground once again. I could instantly feel a difference in the climate. South Carolina weather has a ridiculous amount of humidity year round, and you could almost feel the heaviness in the air as you waded through it. The weather was incredibly different than that of Japan. It was odd experiencing it once again. At least I could remember that much. The sun was bearing down on us relentlessly, the temperature was probably somewhere in the mid-nineties. It seemed that Ryo-ohki had beamed us down into the middle of a neighborhood cul-de-sac.

Something was wrong, the realization made my stomach churn, "Ryoko are you sure we're in the right place?"

"Washu was the one who gave me the coordinates; they have to be right," Ryoko said as she began walking around, "Damn, how do you live in this sort of weather?"

"Well, what do you make of this?" I asked while pointing to my right.

Ryoko turned around and walked up beside me, we both had the same confused looks on our faces. In front of us rested a mailbox and a driveway that led up to absolutely nothing. Yet, all around us existed five houses that had years of aging to them. Even the driveway to this empty lot had aged considerably; the grass was groomed like it was just recently cut a few days ago. I started walking towards the driveway with my eyes squinted in intense perplexity. Washu had already warned me of being disappointed, but I wasn't exactly expecting this of all things. When I reached the end of the driveway, an even stranger realization came to light. There was evidence of a house that existed here, it was so stupidly obvious. In the middle of the lot there was fresh mud in the shape of a rectangle, the exact dimensions of a house. Surrounding the rectangle was a small trench, most likely where the houses brick foundation would be. I couldn't believe what I was seeing. It was like someone had picked up the entire house, plumbing and all, and just erased it from existence.

Ryoko's footsteps were approaching close behind me, I turned around to face her, "I don't even know…" I said blatantly while shrugging my shoulders.

She looked at me with intense study, and then back at the remnants of my home. In fact, she didn't say a word for the entire minute that we stood there in silence. Is it possible that she was sympathizing for me? Here I stood once more, on the very edge of discovering the origins of my amnesia, yet the wall separating me from the solution always seemed to stand so high. Let down after let down, and my mind was starting to suffer from the emotional distress; There is nothing more agonizing than being so close yet so far. If I was any weaker in my mind, there was probably a good chance that I'd go crazy. But instead, I couldn't help but feel doom and gloom. I wonder if Ryoko could detect that in me, perhaps that's why she was sympathizing? Technically speaking, she is an alien and I'm not even aware of the full extent of her abilities. But right now, I honestly didn't care.

"Washu's going to want to know about this," I said colorlessly.

"She already does," Ryoko answered, "She said to get back to Japan as quickly as possible. We'll still stop by Tokyo though, unless of course you'd like to stop somewhere else on our trip back."

I stared at the sky, pondering if there was any other place that I'd be able to go to. It's possible that we could buy clothes from here, I know for a fact that there are clothing stores around here that could potentially suit my tastes. That is: an undershirt, a collared shirt and a pair of khaki pants. I couldn't even remember what fashion was like during the 90's in America.

"Well," I said while pulling out my wallet, "We could always stop by a store here."

"How much money do you have?" Ryoko asked.

I started counting up the bills in my wallet, "Looks like I've got around three hundred bucks, wait…" I stopped to look closer at the bills, "Ah dammit."

"What?"

"Every single damn one of these bills was made after 1998. Look, I've got three twenty dollar bills made in 2005. My luck would be this bad…" I said, now getting irritated again.

"So, what's the difference? It's still technically money, right?" Ryoko responded.

"Well usually it would be. But the US Treasury changed the printing design on the newer generation bills, so there's a high chance a cashier would take notice." I answered.

"You think that would stop me from trying? If it doesn't work we'll just take it." Ryoko said. She sounded awfully serious.

"You're saying that we'll just steal it instead?" I replied.

"Why not? There's no one here to stop us." She sounded even more serious this time. In fact, a smile was appearing on her face again.

"I don't know about you," I said seriously, "But my body isn't immune to bullets. For all we know there could be trigger happy security guards with an itchy finger."

Ryoko let out a healthy laugh, "Oh you are too funny. Fine, if you're afraid of getting shot then you can stay with Ryo-ohki while I go shopping for you."

"Oh hell no," I quickly retorted, "There's no way I'm letting a woman pick out clothes for me."

"Well alright then, let's go find us a store," Ryoko said smiling. She seemed a bit too excited for my liking. It was almost as if she's done this before.

I didn't realize it, but Ryoko had just played me once more, "About twenty miles away from here there's a mall in a place called Harbison; if Ryo-ohki can pull up a map of South Carolina I can probably get a good plot point for us to travel to."

"How can you remember that?" Ryoko asked suspiciously.

"Well like Washu explained to me, I'm not a complete head case, I can still remember vast parts of the world where I came from, but if it has anything to directly do with me then I'll most likely draw a blank." I answered. Maybe this was why Ryoko had said she didn't trust me a while ago; I'm not very consistent with my own memories. Or maybe she was just playing then too.

"I'll have Ryo-ohki beam us back up. This is going to be fun," Ryoko stated with too much enthusiasm.

The both of us were once again consumed with an intense bright light; a second later we were back inside the cockpit. Or was it the bridge? Hell I don't know. When my eyes adjusted to the room there was already a map of South Carolina up on one of the screens. I walked up to it and started navigating my way around. Starting from our current location, I tracked a route that would take us slightly south east about twenty miles away. Right before I went to confirm the destination, it hit me: Wait a minute, am I seriously considering theft?

"Uh, Ryoko?" I asked with hesitation in my voice.

"Hmm?" she replied as she walked over next to me.

"Don't you think it would just be easier if we went to Tokyo instead?" I asked, "I mean I'm sure that there has to be an international market or something for an American kid like me."

Before I knew it Ryoko turned me around and place her hands on my shoulders. She looked at me with a taunting expression, "Don't tell me you're chickening out now?"

"Well," I said while looking away, "It's just that logically speaking we don't have to rob a store just for some damn clothes. It would be easier on the both of us if we just listened to Washu and -"

"But," Ryoko interrupted, "it wouldn't be as fun now would it?"

"How would I know?" I shrugged.

"Exactly! So just listen to Ryoko and do exactly what she says and I promise you won't regret it," she responded.

"Sounds to me like I don't have a choice in the matter," I mumbled.

"Right again."

I looked up at Ryoko, "Promise me one thing though."

"Hmm?"

I stared directly into her eyes, "When we get back you'll answer any question I have."

Ryoko seemed to hesitate a little bit, "Alright, you have yourself a deal."

She reached her arm out in front of mine; I sealed the deal and firmly shook her hand. Ryoko turned to the monitor and pressed a button that confirmed our new destination. There wasn't anything that I could do about it now. I had just agreed to go rob a mall in my own home state. Every bit of morality that was left in me was screaming for me not to go through with this. Yet at the same time the other half of me was just curious enough to not give a damn what my moral side thought. Something told me that I had never done this before, and I was dying to figure out how exhilarating it could be. I mean, Ryoko looks like the woman who can get the job done and that excited me. I'm standing in front of a chance to act out, forget everything, and proceed with this plan of ours with minimal consequence. I mean hell; this isn't even my universe, but a parallel one to mine. When I get back home, any potential criminal record I pick up here will be long gone there. That last thought seemed to open a whole new set of doors. This is a perfect opportunity to experience true freedom; to have "fun" has Ryoko put it.

"Hey Ryoko," I shouted from across the room.

Ryoko turned around in her chair, "Yes?" she said playfully.

I grin found its way on my face, "If we're going to do this, we're going to take more than just a couple pair of clothes. Hell if we were stealing just clothes it wouldn't even be worth it now would it?"

Ryoko jumped out of her chair, "Yes! Now you're talkin'."

"But," I added, "We're going to do it with style."

She put her hands to her hips, "What do you have in mind?"

"I already know that you can handle your own. But me? I don't know if I can outrun security forever. So basically I want you to distract them long enough for me to grab my shit and then get the hell out of dodge. Plus, I don't really feel like having a gun pointed in my face," I paused for a second to make sure Ryoko didn't object to any of this. On the contrary, her eyes approved of basically everything that I had said so far, "Now, luckily for us the mall we're headed to has ceiling windows every fifty feet or so to let in natural light throughout the corridors. If we can somehow put a large enough hole in those windows, Ryo-ohki can beam us up straight from the mall floor. The biggest problem is that those ceiling windows aren't in any of the actual stores. So we have to get past the cash registers first."

"That shouldn't be a problem, how long do you need?" Ryoko asked.

"I'll enter through the food court and covertly make my way into the clothing department. I want you to follow behind me until I get there. When I give the signal, raise hell and do whatever is necessary while I grab as many clothes as I can manage. So I'd say about ten minutes altogether. Think you can keep them away from me for that long?"

Ryoko began rotating her fists, "Oh you have no idea."

"Fantastic," I responded, "When we get inside the mall, I'll tell you which window we should meet up at. After ten minutes have passed, go ahead and grab whatever you want and meet me at the rendezvous. Sound good?"

"Absolutely."

This little idea of mine had definitely put Ryoko in a good mood. If there was one thing I was doing right from all of this, it was figuring out what makes this girl tick. Washu probably won't approve of this in the least bit, but at least I'm getting Ryoko to open up some. Maybe she is having that same problem I am: both of us have been unable to open up and express ourselves. It was definitely an interesting thought.

Ryoko walked up and patted me on the shoulder, "You know, you've really come around in the past couple of hours."

I looked down at my reflection on the floor, "By 'coming around' I guess you mean conforming to your ideas?"

"Oh come now," Ryoko replied while rubbing my hair like a dog, "you know deep down you want to do this. Besides, everyone has to have their cherry popped sooner or later."

I looked at her slack jawed, "You really are just one hundred percent raw aren't you?"

Ryoko grinned, "So are you, you're just trying to be nice around me. I bet deep down you are just as vulgar and uncensored as I am. Especially after seeing you lose it earlier, I know you can do better."

"You think so?" I asked while laughing.

"Of course."

Well, if this is what it's going to take to get Ryoko to open up to me then so be it, "So, do we have any weapons or something, any means of protection?"

"Don't worry," Ryoko replied, "I'll protect you. Washu would kill me if we returned and something had happened to you. It looks like we're here, you ready?"

"As ready as I'll ever be," I said while loosening up my muscles. I was going to need to find some pacified state of mind before I went ahead with this.

Ryoko walked back into the center of the room and onto the platform; I soon followed.

"Ryo-ohki, remain invisible just like before and make sure you stay above me at all times," Ryoko said.

Ryo-ohki meowed and a second later we were sent down into the mall parking lot. Luckily for us, it didn't look like anyone had noticed our descent.

I took a second glance at Ryoko, "Holy shit you're going to stick out like a sore thumb in that damn jumpsuit of yours."

"Would you prefer me go in there naked?" Ryoko teased.

I fantasized over the idea for a split second before laughing, "Nope, you'd be thrown out of there almost instantly."

Ryoko followed closely behind me as we made our way down the parking lot and towards the entrance to the food courts. My heart was already pounding, I couldn't believe we were about to go through with this. It was invigorating to say the least, and the adrenaline was almost therapeutic. There were people absolutely everywhere, all going about their daily lives. People of all ages were congregating at the doors, wading their way through each other, some holding far too many shopping bags. We slipped through the doors, where we were greeted by the fantastic smell of food and the sound of thousands of voices talking simultaneously.

"Wow," Ryoko stared at everybody in astonishment, "I have never seen such a curious sight before. Is every person from America like this?"

"It's definitely a common thing for Americans to do; you know: constant consumption." I answered. I was surprised that Ryoko didn't already know about this.

I looked around the food court and stared at the various business signs. Sbarro, Chik-Fil-A, Subway, The Great Steak and Potato, your typical mall food. You could probably find these at almost any mall across all of America and it probably won't ever change. Ryoko was still staring in amazement, like a child who was attending their first trip to the circus or a theme park. After we were through the food court, that's where the consignment shops started. Every person that I approached I could tell that they were looking directly behind me at Ryoko. As long as they weren't associating me with her then everything would be okay with me, no embarrassment would be had. I took another look at Ryoko, who seemed to be enjoying all the looks she was receiving. I'll admit that she did have a very captivating figure, especially in that damn skin tight suit of hers.

I shook my head and continued walking, "Yo Ryoko, we'll be there in less than a minute, you ready?"

Ryoko snapped out of her daze, "Of course, just tell me when."

"Alright, that window right there," I said while pointing towards the ceiling, "that will be our escape. Once we get up this elevator, have fun, just don't freakin' kill anybody," I asserted.

"Oh I'd never do something like that," Ryoko joked.

Once we were up the elevator, I could see the clothing department in plain sight. I closed my eyes and considered the worst possible scenario, every single thing that could go wrong with this little outburst of ours; of mine. Before I could turn around Ryoko leaped into the air and began flying through the corridor, her body whipping past me in a blur of red, black and cyan. She reached her arms out and starting spinning in circles mid-air, laughing hysterically at the same time. Her personality just doesn't make sense for me. I looked down at my watch and made a mental note for when ten minutes would finally be up.

Within minutes alarms were already going off all around me, I couldn't even keep up with Ryoko's location at this point. The parading of boots of security guards could be heard marching against the tile flooring off in the distance. It seemed like Ryoko had done a perfect job at attracting the attention of every guard in the entire mall at this point. Within minutes every person who was situated in the clothing department had left to go investigate what all the commotion was. For these people, I bet this is the most exciting thing that's ever happened in their life.

Now let's see, it would probably be best to get at least a week's worth of clothing. I tried searching for clothes that mostly matched my own. If all else failed I could simply ditch the collared shirt look and just pick up a few rock n' roll t-shirts and some khaki shorts. Oh, and socks, I'll definitely be needing some socks. Socks and underwear; forgetting said underwear would be a disaster. I looked at my watch once again, five minutes have already passed me by, so I need to go ahead and hurry my ass up. After picking out some suiting clothing I made my way up to the cash register where they kept all the bags. To my delight, there was no one there working, as the person probably ran at the sight of Ryoko flying through the air. I went behind the counter, grabbed a few bags and started placing my neatly folded clothes up into them.

Suddenly I heard a gunshot ring out from the distance, followed by several more. _Oh fuck._ I hope they didn't just shoot her. Without care for eloquence I shoved the rest of my clothes into the paper bags and took off straight for the sound of the shots. When I ran past the store exit alarms started going off around me, but I hadn't the slightest interest in that. I just needed to know whether or not my only chance out of here was dead or not. Several more shots rang out, the popping noise resonating through my head. At this point I was at a full sprint and still managing to look like an idiot while carrying four bags in both my hands.

When I reached the top of the elevator there was several police officers knocked out on the floor at its base.

"Ryoko!" I screamed, trying to get her attention.

I raced down the elevator and towards the rendezvous point. The mall seemed completely deserted as compared to just a few minutes ago. Amazing at what a little chaos can do to large groups. When I rounded the corner there were several more security guards, all of them pointing their guns up at the air. They looked scared to death; their movements were erratic and undisciplined. One of them quickly turned around and pointed his gun at me.

"Don't move!" He shouted.

"Shit…" I muttered to myself.

Ryoko then appeared in front of me out of thin air, "Time to go sweetheart."

"Open fire!" one of the guards shouted.

Ryoko turned around and extended her right arm all the way out in front of her. All of the security guards started shooting, but amazingly each round fell short within inches away from our bodies. Was Ryoko deflecting the bullet's flight path? Amazing. She then reached her left arm straight up into the air. Without warning two intense beams of red energy shot from Ryoko's left hand, making quick work of the window above us. Glass rained down upon the guards and they temporarily retreated so they could reload their weapons.

Ryoko, still holding her previous chance, turned around, "Justin, now!"

"Right!" I responded. Without hesitation I walked underneath the window's location. Within a second I was beamed up into Ryo-ohki once more.

Ryo-ohki greeted me with a friendly meow. I dropped the bags onto the floor and fell straight on my ass. I felt like I was experiencing an overdose of adrenaline. I couldn't even imagine how Ryoko lived for things like this. You have to be a special kind of crazy for a life like this. I laid down on the cold onyx floor and slowly began catching my breath. I concentrated on Ryo-ohki's crystals that gently orbited several feet above my head. It had been at least a few minutes since I was transported back up here and Ryoko still hadn't returned. Her last performance sort of proved to me that she could survive direct fire from gunshots, but I was worried nonetheless.

"Damn Ryo-ohki," I said while still breathing heavily, "I should have snagged you some carrots while I was at it."

I finally decided to roll over onto my stomach so I could push myself back up to my feet. A few seconds later Ryoko began to materialize in the center of the room, which was a huge relief for me. She had to have been holding at least twelve bags under her arms.

Ryoko had the biggest smile I'd ever seen on her face, "I've had better gigs but nothing this fun in quite some time."

"Holy hell how much did you take?" I asked, stunned by the amount of bags she had.

She dropped the bags next to mine; I could hear the distinct sound of glass rattling against each other. "I grabbed whatever I found interesting," she replied nonchalantly.

I looked at Ryoko, but couldn't hold back my smile, "Never again."

"You say that now," Ryoko said while rummaging through her bags, "but when you get the itch you'll do it again. Here, I gotcha something."

"Oh really now?" I asked in disbelief.

Ryoko pulled a bottle out of one of her bags and tossed it in my direction.

"A liter of Jack Daniels, for real?" I stated.

"Yep, I hear advertisements all the time saying how wonderful it is. I've never tried it myself, so I figured you and I could change that tonight when we get back," Ryoko responded.

I set the bottle on the floor next to my chair and sat down. Ryoko was a few seconds behind me, "Unbelievable," I said to myself.

"What is?" Ryoko asked as she sat down and popped the tab off a cold beer.

"Today. It happened so fast and I fell behind."

"Yep," she replied while taking a gulp of her beverage, "I'd say we made some real progress. Ryo-ohki, plot a course for home."

I leaned back into my chair and rubbed my eyes. Now that the adrenaline was gone, I realized just how exhausted I was. My eyes began to grow heavy, and before I knew it I was drifting….

"Hey! Wake up!" a voice shouted.

"Huh?" I mumbled.

"Justin, get your ass out of my chair, we're back."

I opened my eyes to see Ryoko in my face, her breath filled with alcohol, "Jesus, how much did you drink?

"Snap out of it. We need to get these bags to my room before Washu discovers what we did," she said whispering.

"Okay fine whatever," I replied, my mind still groggy from the nap.

The second my feet hit the floor a sense of vertigo rushed through my brain. I grabbed my head out of reaction to try and get rid of the swimming feeling; a few blinks later and I was good to go again.

"Grab these bags and stand on the platform with me," Ryoko said.

While heavily yawning I walked over and picked up my bags and a few of Ryoko's bags. The two of us walked over to that platform and were immediately transported back down in the backyard of the Masaki House. A second later Ryo-ohki landed on Ryoko's shoulder.

"So, where is your room exactly?" I asked.

"Upstairs and down the hall; wait here." She replied.

I watched Ryoko as she phased herself through the backdoor, leaving me alone outside with a handful of stolen bags. At this point I didn't even have a reaction when I discovered that she's basically a super human vigilante. I wonder if Washu had similar traits?

Ryoko materialized through the door once again, "Here, give me the rest of my stuff. You keep your own. Go ahead and walk in, I'll take just a second."

"Gotcha," I responded.

As soon as Ryoko disappeared through the door I opened it and stepped through. The house was quiet, even though technically it was almost dinner time. I wonder where everyone could be? I knew that Washu would most likely be in her lab. I walked over to the red door underneath the staircase and gave it a knock. A few seconds later it unlocked.

"Oh good, you two are back!" Washu exclaimed, "I see you got some clothes, American clothes."

"Yeah," I laughed while rubbing the back of my head, "I had some cash in my wallet and convinced Ryoko to stop by a mall that I know of since it would be easier. You know, so it would save us some time."

"Of course," Washu replied, crossing her arms.

"Alright well…what's next?" I asked.

"Oh right," Washu replied like she was forgetting something, "I've already got your room ready. It's nothing fancy, just a bed and a dresser for your clothes."

"That's really all I need anyway," I said.

"And there's this," Washu handed me a small device, "this is the key to your room. Anytime you want to access it, walk up to my lab door, press the button and wait for the door to unlatch."

"Two rooms inside one door? Washu you never cease to impress." I laughed.

Washu giggled at my undying praise towards her, "Alright well, time for you to tidy yourself up. You look like you could use a hot bath."

"Oh I don't doubt it at all," I said while looking myself over, Where's the shower?"

"Actually, have you ever heard of a hot spring before?" Washu asked.

"Of course, I've just never seen one before." I answered.

"Well…usually the hot springs that I made are for girls only, for obvious reasons. But there's currently no one up there, and there won't be anyone up there for the rest of the day. So I'll make this one exception and allow you access up there. But," Washu pointed her finger in the air, "this is the only chance you'll get so enjoy it while you can."

I looked at Washu slightly confused, "Hey that's fine with me."

"Good, now grab a change of clothes, the towels should already be up there waiting for you," Washu opened her lab door, "And step on through."

I picked up one of my bags which already contained a pair of clothes to change into, "What about the rest of my bags?"

"Don't worry; I'll put them in your room." Washu answered.

I gave Washu a nod and stepped through the lab door. Within an instant I was located in what looked like a tropical biome. To my right was a bathhouse that looked like a changing room. I began making my way over to it; perhaps some peace and quiet is exactly what my troubled mind needs.

**…**

Ryoko's footsteps echoed across the endless sea of white. Holographic displays were moving in lateral motions above her, streaming vast quantities of data. In front of her sat the red-head scientist, Washu, who was already deeply invested into her work.

"How did it go?" Washu asked while typing away furiously on her keyboard.

"Not good," Ryoko shrugged, "But not bad. I did exactly as you asked, but the boy didn't show any signs of recollection towards his past. Not even once."

"A pity," Washu sighed, "If we don't act soon his mind might be lost for good."

"I won't let that happen," Ryoko added.

"I know, and that's why I want you to continue trying to get Justin to open up. The more we expose him to any potential connection to his memory, the better chance we'll have at saving him in the long run," Washu said.

Ryoko crossed her arms and swayed her hips to the right, "Have you figured out what's wrong with him yet?"

Washu brought up a three dimensional representation of Justin's brain. She tapped another button on her keyboard and the brain expanded into a detailed isometric view for an easier visual representation. Several other diagrams and key legends also popped up next to the brain, allowing for a better flow of information.

"Right now," Washu said as she hopped out of her chair, "Justin's brain is acting absolutely normal. Every neuron, every piece of stem cell that has anything to do with his memory is currently intact and is in working order. However, something is suppressing those memories from within. It's almost like someone has activated a firewall inside of his mind and isn't allowing any forms of memory to be accessed."

Ryoko squinted her eyes as she looked at the model, "And do you have any clue why?"

Washu sighed, "Not yet. When Justin falls asleep tonight I'm going to try and implant a Nano-interceptor in him that monitors all brainwave activity and irregularities."

"Ugh, you would," Ryoko mumbled.

"I know I know," Washu said as she got back into her chair, "But for once this is for Justin's benefit and not for…science. The less he knows about what we're doing the better it will be for him in the long run. That last thing we need is for him not to trust us."

"What do you make of what we found at Justin's house?" Ryoko asked.

Washu leaned back into her chair, "It just seems to me like another piece of the puzzle, except the pieces don't seem to fit at all. Technically speaking, there was a house that rested on that land, but not anymore. It's like it disappeared. And I'm betting it did so the second Justin landed here in this universe. That has to be the connection."

"It was strange," Ryoko whispered, "Justin's reaction was strange. I was honestly expecting a more dramatic response from him. But it was like he just buried it down and forgot about it."

"It could very well be another sign," Washu said.

"And what about his phone?" Ryoko asked curiously.

"Right," Washu replied, pulling Justin's phone out of her pocket, "Are you sure you want to know?"

"Why, will I be shocked or something?" Ryoko responded sarcastically.

Washu brought up a series of pictures on the screen in front of them in slideshow format, "Browse through these pictures and tell me when you find something out of place."

"Alright, no need to be so cryptic," Ryoko said as she approached the screen.

Ryoko started surfing through the pictures, all of them retrieved from the corrupted data on Justin's phone. Many of them were irrecoverable, at least for the most part. So a good bit of the images had artifacts and color discrepancies in them. Washu simply went back to work on her keyboard while waiting on Ryoko to find the picture Washu had discovered only hours earlier.

Not even a minute later Ryoko stopped on a certain peculiar picture, "Uh, what the hell is this?" Ryoko gasped.

"It's exactly what you think it is." Washu added.

"I don't understand Washu…"

"Think about it Ryoko, Justin is from a parallel universe, so what you see makes perfect sense…even though it shouldn't" Washu replied with slight remorse.

Ryoko stepped away from the screen to give the picture another look. She couldn't believe what she was seeing. It was the first thing to truly surprise her in quite some time, and she didn't know how to properly react to it.

"Regardless," Washu said, "I want you to continue on with the plan. Justin's phone won't work in this Universe to begin with, so it's not like he'll be able to find the same picture. We should be safe in the meantime."

"If you say so," Ryoko mumbled.

Washu walked up to Ryoko and stared her right in the eyes, "Listen to me dear, I promised Justin that I'd find out what's wrong with him; and to do so, I'm going to need your full cooperation or we might lose him for good."

"I understand," Ryoko said calmly.

"He's currently taking a bath in the private springs, it would be wise to wait until he gets out before talking with him any further," Washu added.

Ryoko chuckled, "If you say so."

"Remember," Washu asserted, "Make sure that he falls asleep good tonight. Tire him out. I don't know if he's a heavy or light sleeper, so I'd rather not get caught tampering with his skull in the middle of the night."

"Don't worry, I've got just the thing," Ryoko replied.

**…**


	4. Chapter 4: A Missing Space Pirate Part 1

Life As I Knew It

Chapter Four

"A Missing Space Pirate, Part 1"

"Justin!" Washu screamed with extreme prejudice, "Wake up!"

The red headed scientist poked Justin in the ribs with the toe of her shoe. No response. She had been at this for a full minute, trying to keep her cool while still having enough energy in her voice to wake a sleeping giant. It wasn't working. Justin sat there before her, lying numbly on the floor with drool trickling from his mouth. His hair was in a wild mess, almost as if he had been exposed to large amounts of electrical current. In his right hand was clutched an empty bottle of Yuengling, which he was holding sentimentally like a child would hold a teddy bear for comfort. Essentially, Justin looked just like a frat boy who had just finished up a night of college partying; only he didn't have the privilege of ending up in a comfortable bed.

Washu was upset for many reasons. For starters, there was the immediate problem of getting Justin awake. That took priority, and right now he was being more stubborn than Ryoko. Secondly, there was the outstanding issue of just _how the hell_ Justin made his way into the laboratory in the first place. The only idea that came to Washu's mind was that somehow Ryoko allowed Justin into the lab. Problematically though, Ryoko couldn't be found. Or rather, she conveniently couldn't be found, not even telepathically. The main cause for Washu's concern was the fact that this was the first time she could ever remember there being a security breach, by a normal human being of all means. While Justin seemed harmless in his current state, there was no telling what he got himself into until Washu took a look at the camera footage. Until then, the fired up Washu demanded an exact explanation from the source.

Justin wiggled a bit on the cold, white tiled floor, gaining Washu's immediate attention. She nudged him again in the ribs, allowing his body to naturally roll on its side. "Justin, I'm not going to ask again, wake up!"

His body began to jump to life as his vitals started warming up like a machine. The progress was slow in his still partially inebriated, hung-over state. He lifted up his head and rolled over onto his back and immediately squinted his eyes to counteract the massive amounts of white light raining down upon him. In hasty retaliation Justin rolled over onto his back and attempted to go back to sleep. Within a few seconds his lungs had continued their slow, controlled breathing and his body was getting ready for another cycle of R.E.M. sleep.

Washu looked down at Justin again with an extremely chaotic stare. "Wake up you ass!" she screamed as she forced a kick sharply into his right ribcage.

Finally noticing Washu's exuberant distress, Justin opened his eyes and rubbed them groggily with his hands. "Woman, what the hell is your problem?" he said with a low, gruff voice. He was completely ignorant of the situation. His throat was terribly hoarse from a dry esophagus.

"What's my problem? What's MY problem? Do you have any idea where you are right now?" Washu barked.

Justin sat up and continued to rub his eyes. He stared around the vista of cascading white and then looked at the bottle of beer he still clutched in his hands. With an animal like grunt he cupped both his hands over his face in agony, "Oh fuck, how the hell did I get here?" he rhetorically asked himself.

"Where's Ryoko?" Washu asked as she kneeled down next to Justin.

"Ryoko?" Justin grumbled.

Washu leaned in closer to Justin, close enough for a one on one conversation even in a small room. "Justin, how did you get in here?" she asked with a stern conviction.

Justin looked up at Washu with bloodshot eyes, barely able to keep them open. The short redhead looked as if she had just gotten out of bed, her hair was tangled and she was still dressed in her nightgown. "I honestly have no idea; I was having a wonderful dream until I felt someone kicking me in my ribs. There was a beautiful girl in there too, so if you don't mind, I'm going to try and see if she's still waiting for me."

Washu took both her hands and grabbed Justin's head, forcing him to make eye contact with her, "Let me be perfectly clear here Justin. I'm not trying to act negatively right now, but you have to understand that you are officially the first person to get into this lab without any evidence of entry, ever. Not even Ryoko can get in here without me noticing. Now I'm going to ask you again, how did you get in here, do you remember _anything_?"

Justin leaned back and rubbed his fingers through his dirty, uncontrolled hair. He tried hard to think about the night before, but he was drawing a complete blank. "I've got absolutely nothing Washu, why are you being so critical about this?"

Washu stood up and walked towards a wall of monitors displaying recorded security footage from the past twenty four hours. She turned around and stared down at Justin, "Try to see this from my perspective. Less than a day ago a stranger shows up on our doorstep claiming he is from another universe entirely, and has subsequently lost all of his memory of his previous existence. Suspiciously, that same person manages to sneak into my laboratory completely unnoticed, and once again can't remember anything. Something here doesn't quite add up, and all the evidence is pointing towards you. Don't blame me for pointing fingers here."

"Okay," Justin replied, "I suppose I could see how that would be an incriminating situation. But, by looking at this empty bottle of beer in my hand, wouldn't it be more accurate to assume that I merely blacked out from drinking last night? That would make just as much sense wouldn't it?"

"Which is also a plausible probability, considering that you reek of alcohol and your toxicology report also confirmed that you got incredibly inebriated last night," Washu shrugged as she crossed her arms, "and because of this, I'm currently giving you some time to explain yourself."

Justin looked at Washu suspiciously, "Wait a minute, toxicology…never mind; I don't want to know how you managed that."

"You'd be surprised what a super genius can do in five minutes time," she responded.

"I'm honestly not sure what to think of that idea either," Justin replied as he stood up and stretched his sore body.

"Well, do you have anything to say, any information you could give me?" Washu asked, continuing to probe.

"Nope," Justin responded, not giving it a second thought.

Washu pressed a button on her keyboard and the exit door to her lab opened up, "Well if you come up with any information, come to me immediately. I'd suggest finding Ryoko and anything else that will help you prove your innocence."

"Hey, consider me innocent until proven guilty. I'm going to get myself into the shower though, I smell like I haven't bathed in days," Justin said as he checked his disgusting self over.

"In the meantime," Washu said as she hopped into her floating chair, "I'll be reviewing these security videos and try to figure out how you got in here."

"Why can't we look at them now? Together?" Justin asked curiously.

Washu was typing away on her keyboard and seemed to grow more distant with each fleeting moment. "Because I said so," she replied.

Justin looked at Washu in amazement, "That's such a copout answer though!"

Washu didn't say a word.

"Alrighty then, I'll see ya around. Freakin' awkward…" Justin mumbled as he made his way to the exit of her lab.

Washu was terribly concerned about this entire situation and she needed to diffuse it fast. It was a longshot, but it was entirely possible that Justin was being used, or worse, volunteering in a possible sabotage of all of her work. Washu rested back into her chair and considered all the possible angles that this situation called for. The worst case scenario is that her worst enemies had found her as well as found a hole in her defenses. She needed to work fast to make sure all of her data was still secure. There was also the idea that Justin himself was an entirely new threat and was acting alone. But that wouldn't account for the legitimate suppression of his own memories. Why would someone erase their own mind and then initiate such a task? It didn't make any sense. No matter how logically Washu thought about it, she couldn't convince herself of any plausible conclusion. All she could really do right now is review the video footage and help for the best. Confidence was her greatest asset right now.

Justin walked through the exit, and the door sealed shut behind him. Washu was once again alone in her natural habitat. She immediately pulled up all camera feeds from the night before, displaying twelve monitors in front of her all showing different parts of the lab. The main point of focus was camera number seven, which had the duty of recording all thru traffic in and out of her lab. With a single keystroke Washu commanded all of the monitors to speed up the video data to twelve times normal speed. She sipped on a cup of freshly brewed coffee as she viewed each monitor, carefully making sure she didn't skip over a single thing. Suddenly, there it was. Washu paused all the videos and selected monitor number seven. All the other monitors disappeared from view and number seven took their place. Washu pressed play and prepared for the worst, but hoped for the best…

…

Needless to say, this morning had been an interesting start for Justin. For the most part, Washu seemed pretty upset that he had made his way into her lab while she was asleep. At the same time, Justin couldn't really see how he was to fault, especially when he couldn't remember a thing from the night before. So technically, he could plea plausible deniability on the entire situation. However, Justin wasn't a person who could do that, knowing all too well that he was going to have to figure out the answer eventually; so even then, playing stupid wasn't the best of the options on his plate. As of now, Justin needed to concentrate on finding Ryoko, wherever the cunning woman may have run off to. Justin knew for a fact that she was somehow behind this hangover of his. What he didn't know, was just how much mischief he managed to get into the night before. To a certain extent, he really didn't want to know.

Right now Justin was in hopeless agony. This particular hangover felt like someone was trying to drive a dull ended piece of rebar straight into his skull. With each heartbeat, blood would flow through his brain, through his constricted blood vessels, causing ridiculous amounts of head pain. Every little ambient soundwave felt like an ear shattering explosion, every lightwave was brighter than a thousand burning suns. Justin needed several aspirin, and an explanation. On the bright side, the room that Washu had quickly fabricated for Justin didn't have any external light sources. So he was able to relax in peace for a few minutes after taking his shower. There was just one problem, however. When Justin walked into his room the first thing he noticed was an overly-evident paper trail of empty beer cans and liquor bottles scattered throughout the room. To add to that, his clothes which he had neatly stashed away into his dresser, were also thrown about the room; fortunately, he didn't detect any female memorabilia or paraphernalia. That was without a doubt the best news he would probably hear all morning. The last thing he needed at this point was to get involved with the opposite sex.

Justin searched the room to try and locate any signs or traces of evidence from the night before, but the only thing he had to go on were the empty cans and bottles. There was just so many trace amounts of alcohol sitting in one place, that there was no possible way Justin could have drank it all on his own. There had to be a partner in crime, and who else was the only person in the house with a taste for the hard stuff? Ryoko. It was undeniable, especially considering the robbing spree she partook in yesterday at the mall. Yes, it was unmistakable now. All the answers were held with Ryoko, the only problem now was finding her. Justin didn't even remember being with Ryoko the night before, and Washu didn't even know where she was. So what hope in hell did Justin have in finding her? The more he thought about it, the more insane Washu's request – or demand rather – became.

The only way to get to the bottom of this dilemma, as much as Justin wanted to avoid it, was to start asking questions. Perhaps the right answers will spark some of his memory. Although it was highly unlikely, considering the blackout due to excessive drinking, it was still worth a shot in the dark. Justin began searching the room for a clean change of clothes to put on, making sure to avoid the ones with the strong smell of day old beer. Once he had found an adequate wardrobe he went for the remote control device that Washu had given him. With a single click of the button, a dimensional rift between his room and the living room opened. With basically little effort Justin drifted back into the warmness of the Masaki home.

Upon arriving in the living room, he was greeted to a cold reception. Justin looked over at the clock on the far wall, nearest to the kitchen, and noticed that it was five thirty in the morning. It was just now beginning to sink in that Washu woke him up before the sun had even breached the damn horizon. She must be really devoted to her work to get up that early, possibly on a daily basis. To Justin, the very thought of that kind of devotion was maddening. Interestingly enough, the TV wasn't on this time like it was the previous morning when he first arrived. Fortunately, Justin heard sound coming from the kitchen, which only meant one thing: Sasami was in there – another person up before the sun – and possibly making breakfast. Justin seemed to lack an appetite right now, so he'd have to settle for answers instead.

He made his way into the kitchen, rubbing his eyes and massaging his temples. When he finally walked in, Sasami took immediate notice. "Good morning, how are you feeling?" she asked warmly.

Justin stopped rubbing his eyes and waited for his vision to clear. "I assume you know what happened to me last night Sasami?"

She looked at Justin curiously, "What do you mean?"

"Nothing," he responded, "I was actually hoping that you could give me a few answers to what kind of trouble I got into. And well, if you guys had any aspirin floating around the house."

Sasami sat there in front of her cutting board, trying to recall anything about yesterday pertaining to Justin, more specifically what happened after dinner. "Well, after dinner last night you sort of disappeared with Ryoko. During dinner you had obviously had too much, and was scaring Ayeka crazy with how you were reacting. Everyone else was sort of enjoying it though since you weren't being too rude about the entire thing. But after that we all lost track of you. So you'd have to talk to Ryoko and ask her about it."

Justin looked around the kitchen and scratched the back of his head, "That's just the thing. Washu doesn't know where Ryoko is, and I don't even remember being with her after dinner last night. That's when everything becomes blurry. Do you know of anyone else around here that would possibly know?"

"Um, well I remember Kiyone saying something about losing something very important to her, "Sasami replied, "but to be completely honest I wasn't really paying attention to her." Sasami couldn't help but laugh at her silliness.

"Kiyone? It's worth a shot at least. Do you know if she is awake yet? The last thing I need to do is start this morning off by waking up a woman before she needs to be," Justin said.

"Yeah Kiyone and Mihoshi should both be upstairs in their rooms and awake. So you can stop by and talk to them before they both head off to work," Sasami recommended.

"Alright, I guess I'll start there," Justin responded with enthusiasm, "Oh and, about that aspirin?"

"Oh that's right," Sasami said as she reached for the medicine cabinet, "Here: two of these should help but give it time. Also, can you do me favor?"

Justin took the two pills from Sasami's hands and popped them into his mouth, "Of course Sasami, what do you need?"

"Well it's about Ryo-ohki," she said, "I couldn't find her this morning either. When she didn't show up to help me with breakfast I got a little worried. I even called out to her but never got an answer. Do you think you could possibly go and look for her as well?"

Justin looked Sasami over, already knowing the answer to her question. He was curious as to why she thought he would deny her request. Perhaps it was just part of her humble nature to ask so kindly. "Of course Sasami, while I'm here don't hesitate to ask me for anything. I guess it is part of my job now to help you guys around the house since I'm basically a tenant living here for the time being."

Sasami's face lit up when she heard Justin's reply, "Oh thank you!"

"No problem," Justin shrugged, "When I find her I'll send Ryo-ohki your way. In the meantime, don't overwork yourself. I swear, the only time I've seen you is when you're in the kitchen slaving over food. If you ever need a cooking partner don't be afraid to ask me."

"You know it's funny," Sasami smiled, "You told me the same thing last night when you and Ryoko were drunk."

Justin pondered Sasami's comment for a moment, "Just how drunk do you remember me getting last night?"

"You were already pretty far gone," Sasami replied, going back to cutting vegetables, "And I remember Ryoko telling everyone how the night was far from over. After you two disappeared from the house that's when we all lost track of you. I think we were all in bed and the two of you still weren't home."

Justin looked around the room, trying to soak in the new flow of information coming in. "Did Ryoko ever say where we were going by chance?"

"Nope," Sasami replied, "But you never questioned Ryoko either."

"Yeah, and I'm beginning to regret that decision. I'm starting to think she tricked me," Justin said.

"What do you mean?" Sasami asked.

"Well," Justin sighed, "I remember talking to her yesterday; she specifically told me that I was overstressing myself and 'needed to lighten up.' To be perfectly honest I believed every bit of it and agreed to let her show me a good time. Conveniently, we just happened to have a large collection of alcohol from our earlier adventures together. And now, here I am, hungover and trying to figure out just what the hell that woman did to me. Only problem is…she's nowhere to be found."

Sasami gave Justin a strange look, as if she knew exactly what Justin was getting at, "I remember the first day I met Ryoko; it's kind of funny to think about it. She's doing the same thing to you as she basically did to all of us."

"What do you mean exactly?" Justin asked, now becoming suspiciously confused.

"Well, I don't mean to sound rude or anything," Sasami said, her voice quivering slightly, "but I think it's safe to say that she's using your company to have fun at your own expense."

"Isn't that what most girls do to begin with?" Justin asked sarcastically.

"Beats me," Sasami shrugged, it wasn't like she was going to know the answer to that. After all, she's simply not that kind of person to begin with.

Justin let out a long exhale and looked out the window, by now the sun was finally starting to come up. He didn't realize it until now, but Justin was incredibly drained from last night's mischievous misadventure. So much so that his eyes were practically stinging from being exposed to oxygen; it felt like cannon balls were attached to his eyelids. Justin hadn't even gotten to check himself in the mirror yet, but chances were he looked like a train wreck. Regardless, it was time to go to work.

"Alright Sasami," Justin said as he made his way out of the kitchen, "I really appreciate your help. I'll make sure to find Ryo-ohki for you as well."

Sasami released another gregarious smile, "Thanks again, and good luck!"

Justin started making his way up the stairs; almost every other floorboard creaked from the pressure of his footsteps. He was hoping that either Kiyone or Mihoshi could shed some light on his situation and hopefully get him started on the right path to figuring everything out. If that didn't work, he'd just have to find Nobuyuki and Ayeka and ask them a similar series of questions. Playing the role of a private investigator didn't exactly settle well with Justin right now, mainly considering that he was looking into clues on himself. It felt counterproductive and invariantly silly. On the other hand, it would at least give him something to do. Quite frankly, Justin wasn't at all worried about Washu; he would do this at his own pace, and when the answer finally showed itself then she would finally know.

As he approached the door, Justin could already make out the faint mumbling of a passionately worded conversation on the other side. That was at least a sure tale sign that the two girls were awake and possibly in a mood for discussion.

"Ugh, where the hell is it!" Justin heard as he leaned in closer. The voice sounded like Kiyone, who had a distinguished voice even through the muffling.

"Don't look at me! I don't keep up with your equipment!" another voice responded. That must be Mihoshi.

Their voices sounded somewhat frantic, as if they were desperately looking for something that had been misplaced. From behind the door Justin could hear the sound of furniture being moved, the drop of footsteps and various unknown items being tossed around the room.

"I swear I had the thing yesterday, where could it have run off to?" Kiyone shouted rhetorically.

"Don't be silly! Guns don't just grow legs and walk away," Mihoshi replied.

"Now is not the time Mihoshi!" Kiyone fired back.

Justin leaned away from the door and gave it a firm knock with his fist. Immediately the commotion from the other side ceased. The door hastily slid open, revealed Kiyone on the other side.

"What!" Kiyone shouted directly into Justin's face. She blinked once before realizing who was standing in front of her. "Oh, THERE you are, where the hell have you been?"

"Uh," Justin replied, somewhat dumbfounded, "I was actually hoping you could answer that for me."

"Where is my gun?" Kiyone asked.

"Your gun?" Justin replied ignorantly.

"Yes, my gun," she responded.

Mihoshi walked up beside Kiyone, "Kiyone woke up this morning and her police issued sidearm was missing. We're kind of freaking out because we have to be at work in like…five minutes."

"And you're asking me because…?" Justin asked.

"Because you were the last person we remember with it," Kiyone answered as she placed her index finger straight towards his forehead.

Justin stood there, redundantly confused and having trouble soaking in the information. "What a minute," he said, "both of you are going to have to forgive me on this one. I had a rough wake up to a grouchy redhead, can't remember a damn thing, and now I'm apparently in possession of Galaxy Police property. Isn't that a felon or something? This is all new to me. So, what exactly did I do last night that would put me and your gun in the same sentence?"

"You mean you don't remember?" Kiyone asked.

Justin was getting slightly annoyed by that question. He wasn't trying to be sarcastic, but honestly, would he be asking that question if he did remember?

"I'm surprised you still remember Kiyone," Mihoshi added in, nudging Kiyone in the ribs, "we all got pretty hammered last night."

"Hold on, you guys were with me last night?" Justin asked, clearly surprised once more.

"Well," Mihoshi said, "Not the entire night. You came up to Kiyone and challenged her to a shooting competition. She pretty much couldn't resist your offer."

"Mihoshi…" Kiyone mumbled, getting aggravated.

Mihoshi chuckled at Kiyone's distress, "You made Kiyone a bet that you were a better shot than she was. You were already drunk at the time, and told her that the loser had to 'shotgun' a beer. Well, several rounds later -"

"Enough!" Kiyone screamed, "Justin, I really need my weapon back. Like right now."

Justin just starred at the two girls, trying to formulate a thought that was semi-rational in nature. "Can we just…back up for a minute?" Justin asked, "perhaps all the way to the beginning?"

"Fine, will you at least agree to help me find my gun?" Kiyone sighed.

"Of course," Justin honestly replied, "I just need to get a solid recap on the events of last night. Specifically what I was doing when you saw me and the last thing you remember me saying."

"Wow, you really don't remember anything do you?" Mihoshi asked.

Again with the irritating, perpetually aggravating question.

"Nothing, I must have blacked out sometime after dinner," Justin replied, "and firing a gun? Perhaps a faint memory; I don't' even know what your gun looks like."

"Alright well, what do you want to know specifically?" Kiyone asked.

"Well for starters, I wouldn't mind knowing about how I beat you in a shooting competition," Justin said playfully.

"Next question," Kiyone quickly replied, "but here, come in and have a seat."

Kiyone and Mihoshi moved out of Justin's way so he could enter the room. Justin walked to the nearest chair that was in the room and took a seat. The room was distinctively separated into two parts. One part was organized and compartmentalized like someone with orderly obsessive compulsive disorder. The other side of the room was disorganized and ill proportioned in comparison. It didn't exactly take any form of critical thinking to diagnose which parts of the room belonged to whom.

"Alright well," Justin said as he got comfortable in his chair, "When I saw you guys last night, was Ryoko with me?"

"Not that I recall," Mihoshi replied.

"I don't think she was," Kiyone answered as well, "the two of you left the house after dinner. Ryoko said that the night was still young. She took you and Ryo-ohki with her and then left."

"That doesn't make any sense," Justin said, "How in the hell did I even get back here? Sasami said this morning that she couldn't find Ryo-ohki."

"I didn't realize she was missing too," Kiyone added, sounding concerned.

"Yeah, apparently there is a lot of stuff that I'm unaware of right now," Justin replied.

"So you somehow managed to get back here without Ryoko or Ryo-ohki?" Mihoshi asked.

"That is what everything is pointing towards right now. And apparently when I got back, I felt like shooting shit," Justin answered, "I'm pretty sure those are small hints at drunken, socio-psychotic behavior. The thing is, I can't even remember the last time I was with Ryoko except for when we were eating together. I mean, she could basically be anywhere right now. Hell, Washu can't even find her."

"A missing Ryoko can't ever be a good sign," Mihoshi said, "in the past when that happens, it usually means she's gotten into trouble."

"Well I'm really hoping she doesn't find a way to put the blame on me," Justin said, "the last thing I need is that crazy woman going homicidal on me. If I don't have to worry about Ryoko, then I have to worry about Washu. You should have seen how hysterical she was this morning."

"Why, what did you do?" Kiyone asked.

"Well apparently," Justin said while laughing, "I also, to add to the list of craziness that I got into, managed to sneak into her lab and pass out. I woke up to her kicking me in the ribs, screaming and carrying on about how I managed to get in."

"You broke into Washu's lab?" Kiyone gasped, heavily surprised, "How?"

Justin shrugged his shoulders, "I don't even know, that's the funny thing about it all, but I wouldn't exactly implicate myself and call it 'breaking in.' Now she's expecting me to explain myself, while at the same time wanting me to find Ryoko because apparently not even Washu can locate her."

"That's definitely not a good sign then," Kiyone said.

"Well what do you plan on doing about it?" Mihoshi asked.

"Well for starters," Justin replied, "I need to find your gun. I'm already heavily confused on how you could have let me just walk away with it without you noticing. I mean, where did we even have this shooting contest?"

"Washu has a shooting range in her lab for weapons testing," Kiyone answered.

"Again with Washu…" Justin mumbled.

"What?" Kiyone added, "She figured it would be a good test to study."

"Another test, huh?" Justin stated rhetorically, rolling his eyes.

"That's right," Mihoshi said, "a test between two drunks: one who was trained with the weapon, and then you, a complete amateur; although your skill proved otherwise."

Kiyone shot Mihoshi another venomous look, "Okay, so perhaps I had a little trouble."

"And even more trouble after your sixth beer," Mihoshi laughed.

"Girls focus please," Justin said trying to concentrate, "After that, what happened?"

"Well," Mihoshi continued, "we were enjoying ourselves, and then I think Ryoko managed to find you. She kept saying something about going back to some mall. She seemed really fidgety about going back and -"

"Oh my god," Justin blurted out while uneasily shifting in his chair, "Are you freaking telling me that Ryoko and I went back to the United States? Against Washu's permission?"

"Well," Mihoshi replied, her voice dropping drastically, "Incidentally Washu had stepped away for that exact moment."

"Ryoko had to have known, it can't be coincidence that she showed up at the right moment when Washu's attention was elsewhere," Justin said, becoming obviously paranoid.

"Don't give her that much credit," Kiyone chimed in, "it could just be coincidence."

"Coincidence?" Justin looked over at Kiyone with frantic eyes, "Right now, the evidence is telling me that I took your gun and went to the United States – with your gun. I could have been running around with alien technology, flashing it in front of whomever I pleased. While Ryoko flies around shooting out street lights and lighting cars on fire or…whatever arson related crimes she can think up. What if I shot at someone, what if Ryoko shot at someone? What if I shot at Ryoko? What if she then shot at ME! I mean-"

"Justin calm down!" Kiyone yelled, trying to cool Justin's nerves, "none of that happened, it's absurd – maybe."

Justin got out of the chair and made his way towards the door, "Where's Ryoko's room?"

Kiyone looked confused, "It's two doors down from ours, why?"

Justin turned around and looked at the two girls, a look of determination now in his eyes. "I'm going to look for clues; you know - detective stuff."

"What about my gun?" Kiyone asked, still prodding at the issue.

"I'm sorry, but I'll find it when I find it. In the meantime, you should also be looking for it as well," Justin responded, "take care ladies."

Kiyone and Mihoshi just stared, not entirely sure what to say.

Even though his head was still pounding, Justin's determination to get to the bottom of this mess was strong enough to push the enduring pain aside for now. This entire situation was enough for him to panic and grow incredibly irritated at the same time. For the most part, Justin thought that some force in the universe was intentionally imposing bad luck upon him. He felt like he had a double insult stamped upon his forehead. One being his default loss of memory from his trans-universal flight, and now this: a simple hangover. It was stupid to the point to where it was tragic. A god damned Greek tragedy. Justin was fed up. He was fed up of being hysterical, of being worried of the consequences and especially being worried about Ryoko.

Justin walked up to Ryoko's door and slid it open without giving a second thought. The state of the room that lay before him was entirely predictable. Ironically, Ryoko's room greatly resembled his own. Clothes were scattered about, the bed littered with magazines and empty bags of chips, assorted sweets and soda cans. It wasn't all bad though; the walls were decorated with posters of several popular and well established musicians and graphical artists. Justin quickly took notice to these posters and almost instantly grew a small foundation of respect for Ryoko's taste in music. It was almost enough for him to ignore all the other faults of her character – almost.

"Ryo-ohki, are you in here by chance?" Justin called out. It was worth a shot at least.

Unfortunately, there was no answer, only silence. Regardless, Justin began searching the room for clues or whatever could help him. In a sense, he was also looking for dirt on Ryoko, or anything that could give him an edge over her chaotic nature. Surprisingly though, her room appeared to be rather clean, metaphorically speaking at least. The rest was left up to interpretation. Still, even though he knew this was necessary, Justin wasn't keen on the idea of snooping around someone's personal space. That is of course, until he spotted a peculiar object out of his peripheral vision. To his left, a mirror hung delicately on the wall; and on this mirror, was a picture of a boy. Justin moved closer to gauge a better look at this photograph. The kid had to be close to his own age, perhaps slightly younger. Justin couldn't help but wonder why Ryoko would have this picture, unless perhaps he meant something special to her.

"I think I just found your kryptonite Ryoko…" Justin muttered out loud.

Justin took the picture from off the mirror and neatly folded it, putting it into his wallet so it would remain protected. It was clear that he planned on questioning Ryoko about the person in that picture, once he managed to find her that is. He looked around the room one last time, making sure to scan every piece of detail as if not to miss anything potentially important. Once Justin was satisfied that he had covered as much of the room as possible, he carefully made his way out of the door and closed it shut. Down the hall, he could still hear Kiyone and Mihoshi rambling on. Kiyone's gun would have to wait; right now that thing was as good as lost to Justin. Then again, he was still curious about the weapon all the same. After all, who wouldn't be? It's alien technology. Not to mention, Justin could use a little bit of defense around this group; especially Ryoko. Then again, Ryoko was able to deflect incoming slugs from those mall security guards; perhaps she could do the same with Kiyone's gun too.

As he began his walk down the hallway, a faint vibration in his right pants pocket quickly caught Justin's attention. With a perplexed expression, he reached down into his pocket to discover the source of such strange behavior. It was Washu's remote control to his room.

"Justin, get over to my lab now," Washu said, her voice coming through the tiny device. She sounded neither concerned or upset, which was the greatest fear for Justin.

"Uh, okay? What is this about now?" Justin asked, but he received no answer.

This morning Washu seemed to be showing Justin her more unfriendly, strictly business side. Her attitude towards him as a whole had turned from intense intrigue to a sophisticated form of skepticism. In a sense, Justin could begin to see where Ryoko got some of her own attitude from. At least Washu was a little bit more civilized about her diplomatic affairs. Justin began making his way towards the stairs, slightly anxious as he anticipated Washu's potential response. It was very possible that she had already analyzed the videos from the night before. If that was the case, then Justin didn't have many options to defend himself since he still hadn't figured out any information. He knocked on the red door underneath the staircase; a few seconds later a familiar sound of decompression came from within and the door creaked open.

"Come in," Washu said as she stuck her head out, "I want to show you this."

Her tone seemed to be calm and reserved, but Justin couldn't read her well enough yet to see what she was truly thinking. It's doubtful that anyone ever could in the first place. Justin anxiously entered the lab; the door quickly closed shut behind him. Within the first moments of being in this strange new world, Justin had already gotten far too familiar with this place. He felt like he was inside this massive facility for the majority of his time spent here so far, while in reality it was only a few minutes if you disregard last night. One again, Washu positioned herself in her favorite chair while waiting for Justin to approach her.

"I can only imagine you found something on the cameras?" Justin asked as he stopped right next to her, "Otherwise I can't think of a reason what you would want me for."

"I could always use you for experiments," Washu replied.

"That depends whether or not it's life threatening," Justin joked.

"Sometimes you have to break a leg for science," Washu commented, "other times you have to make greater sacrifices. Otherwise progress will never be made."

"Yeah, unfortunately that's true," Justin added, "So what have you got?"

Washu got out of her chair and walked over to a wall of computer screens, each one feeding her different forms of data. Justin didn't realize it, but several of these monitors were live feeds being streamed straight from his brain. In the short time that Justin was unconscious in Washu's lab, she had managed to implant the nano-interceptors with no trouble at all. The original plan was to do this procedure while Justin was asleep in his bed, but of course things had changed. Washu saw this small window she had as an opportunity to make sure that Justin would be under her surveillance for the rest of his stay here. In reality, it was the best collateral against him that she had; anything that Justin did or thought, that data would be collected, processed and sent to Washu for studying. She would eventually be able to monitor every brainwave, every miniscule thought that he had. While she understood the high levels of privacy invasion, it was impeccably justifiable when she considered her investments.

"You see this monitor here?" Washu asked as she pointed to monitor number seven.

Justin walked up to Washu, trying to concentrate on absorbing all the data in front of him, "Yeah, what about it?"

"Watch it," Washu replied as she pressed play.

As the video started, Justin watched with a tired, yet keen eye. At the same time, several pattern fluctuations on the interceptors' monitors surrounding him began changing with every passing moment. To Washu, this was a definite sign that Justin was trying hard to remember the night before, but was still unable to, enabling the weight on her heart to lessen if only slightly.

"Here it comes," Washu added.

Five seconds later, the door to Washu's lab began to open. She zoomed the video feed in so Justin could get a closer look at what was about to happen. As the door opened completely, he could see himself staggering into the lab, completely disoriented and obviously confused of where he was. Justin witnessed himself stumble forward further into the lab, gripping his head as if something was trying to tear its way out. A few steps more and he collapsed onto the floor, beginning to writhe in pain. The nano-interceptors began sending back mountains of data onto the forward monitors, catching Washu's attention even more. She was beginning to get worried as she watched Justin's heart rate increase in real time. In a sense, Washu could almost feel his heart rate increase, like low frequency soundwaves penetrating her own body faster and faster with each passing second. It was slightly painful for her to watch.

"Washu…"

"Keep watching…"

Justin watched himself roll over onto his back, the video showing his breathing steadily increasing. His hands still tightly gripped his forehead and it was clear to see him screaming at this point. Washu took a deep breath as she prepared for the next coming moment. Without warning, the camera feed showed pixelated artifacts forming around the edges of the screen, as magnetic pulses began disrupting everything within a noticeable radius around Justin. The video feed then went black for several seconds, until finally reverting back to normal functions, showing a now unconscious Justin on the floor. The time differentiation between the blackout spanned at least five minutes. The recording finally came to an end, showing Justin cradled on the tile floor, a bottle of beer fit snug in his hands, just as Washu found him this morning. The lab door was also noticeably closed at this point, without Justin's intervention, which was another worrying sign in itself.

Washu stopped playing the video, the silence of the laboratory adding greatly to the suspense of the situation. Justin's interceptor monitors showed that his heart rate had begun to stabilize, but his brainwaves were noticeably off the charts. He was experiencing a sensory overload, but otherwise he was lucid.

"So," Justin said, swallowing to try and moisten his dry mouth, "I guess that still doesn't explain how I got in here does it?"

Washu rested her hand on Justin's shoulder, "Not even, but to be honest with you kid, that's not my primary concern anymore. I now need to figure out what happened during the blackout on the video."

"And how do you propose to do that?" Justin asked.

"I don't know yet, but I'll figure something out," Washu replied, "after all, it's something that I do on a regular basis."

"So what now?" Justin wondered, staring down at his feet.

Washu let out a deep exhale, almost as if she had been holding her breath for the entire time, "I let you go and you'll continue looking for Ryoko. It's important that she's found."

"Just like that? You show me that disturbing video and then let me go?" Justin questioned, "Washu, what is wrong with me? I have to know."

Washu stared at Justin as she tried to formulate a convincing response, "I can only speculate at this point that it has something to do with your memory block; but right now I don't have any definitive evidence to go on until I figure out what happened in between the lines so to speak."

In reality, Washu really didn't have an answer; for all she knew Justin's spasm could have been caused by the nano-interceptors. It was possible that they malfunctioned and created a massive electrical spike. But Washu had to be practical here and avoid any outlandish ideas as of now. The thought that nanites could create such an intense amount of energy without completely destroying Justin's brain was a near impossible scenario; yet it was the only thing Washu had to go on, especially since she lost her evidence at the most crucial point. But science has no realm for such preposterous hypothesizes and Washu would have to work with what she had. She had definitely gotten herself into a predicament, as she desperately wanted to tell Justin the truth about the interceptors, but was still unable to because it would just make the situation more unpleasant. For the first time in a long time, she was clueless on what to do.

"So you're saying that my memory block caused me to spaz out all over your lab?" Justin asked suspiciously.

"I can't say for sure yet," Washu replied, sensing Justin's skepticism, "but in the next hour I should have found something out."

Justin stared at the scientist in front of him, his eyes at an uneasy rest, "Washu, I'm going to be okay right? I mean like, I'm not dying…right?"

Washu could feel her heart sink straight into the depths, "No, why would you think such a thing?"

"I guess you could say, that well….I guess you could say that perhaps this hangover of mine isn't actually hangover, but a problem with my brain," Justin softly pondered.

"Justin," Washu said in a soothing tone, "don't think like that."

"It's hard not to," he replied, "What if what happened to me last night was a prelude to some form of mental debilitation? And what if I'm already starting to feel -"

"That's enough!" Washu interrupted, obviously becoming emotional as well, "Don't be so damned pessimistic. You have nothing to worry about because I'm going to figure it out."

"I'm sorry," Justin replied.

"Listen, I know things are difficult for you right now, but please for the sake of your own sanity, try and keep calm and allow these events to unfold on their own time," Washu said.

Justin looked around the lab, contemplating Washu's words of wisdom. If he was going to survive this, he was going to have to go about the entire situation in a calm manner. That even meant dealing with Ryoko and her wildness, especially when he finally managed to find her.

"You're right, I need to just relax and allow you time to figure things out," Justin said.

Washu smiled at his trust in her, "Good, and I promise you that I'll get you answers as soon as I can. Now, if it won't trouble you too much, could you continue looking for my daughter?"

"Of course," Justin responded, "there's only one problem."

"And that would be?" Washu asked.

"I can't find Ryo-ohki. Sasami couldn't find her this morning either and I promised to find her," Justin replied.

"What do you mean?" Washu said, "Ryo-ohki is in your bedroom."

Justin looked at Washu, incredibly perplexed, "And how long have you known this?"

"Just now to be honest," Washu shrugged, "she just woke up and started moving around your room."

"That's ridiculous," Justin laughed, "ah man that helps out a lot actually. You see, I was unclear on just how I managed to get home last night without Ryo-ohki."

"So you two _did_ go out last night," Washu said, turning her stern gaze upon Justin.

"Uh," Justin hesitated, realizing the fire pit he may have stepped into, "Apparently so."

"Hmm," Washu hummed, "That might explain why I can't locate her."

Justin was surprised that Washu didn't snap at him, "You mean you don't have some tracking device installed in her brain?"

Washu half-heartedly laughed at Justin's almost true statement. "I may be her mother, but even I know the boundaries of personal privacy," she said hypocritically.

"Right," Justin said, "that would be borderline…_weird._ Anyway, thanks for giving me the heads up on Ryo-ohki; that really makes my life a lot easier now."

"Don't mention it, I'll get in touch with you when some data turns up," Washu said.

"Sounds good," Justin replied, "I'll try and get Ryoko back as soon as possible. If she doesn't kill me beforehand…."

"Don't worry, I've informed her to not lay a finger on you," Washu reassured him, but personally unsure of whether Ryoko would actually listen.

"Alright, I'll go get to work then," Justin said as he made his way towards the exit once again.

Justin slipped through the door and entered the living room, the smell of food instantly bombarding his senses. Ayeka, who had noticed his arrival, was situated on the couch.

"Good morning Justin, Sasami told me all about your trouble; how are you holding up?" Ayeka asked, a hint of humor in her voice.

"I'm doing fine, I'm actually on my way to find Ryoko right now; figured I'd stop by and let Sasami know that I found Ryo-ohki," Justin replied.

"Oh come now," Ayeka continued, "don't you think you can let this house remain peaceful for just a little while longer?"

"I can't; Washu's orders," Justin said, craftily avoiding Ayeka's dispossession of care towards Ryoko. Even though Ryoko had given him such a hard time, Justin still couldn't help but defend her.

"Well in that case, I suppose it can't be helped," Ayeka said.

"Nope," Justin replied sarcastically, "Anyway, I best be going."

"Of course, don't let me keep you waiting."

Justin made his way over to the kitchen and popped his head in, "Hey Sasami."

Sasami quickly looked up and made eye contact with Justin, "Oh hello again!"

"I just wanted to let you know that I found Ryo-ohki, but I'm going to have to borrow her for a while," Justin said.

"Oh that's no problem," Sasami responded, "I'm just happy knowing that she's safe. How long will you be gone?"

"No clue; It all depends on how well this next hour goes," Justin said, "I'm hoping, considering how fast Ryo-ohki can fly, that it won't be too long."

"Well, the reason I asked was because I went ahead and packed you a snack for wherever you went," Sasami said as she showed Justin the delicately wrapped box.

"You are far too kind," Justin said, "No really."

Sasami smiled at Justin's compliment, "Oh it's nothing."

Justin walked up to Sasami beside the counter and accepted the food, "I appreciate it, but do me a favor and get yourself out of this kitchen; perhaps make your older sister pull some of the weight around here."

"If that happened," Sasami giggled, "then nothing would get done around here. I do what I can because otherwise we'd have nowhere else to go."

"Yeah," Justin agreed, "I can relate there. But anyway, thank you again. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go find a lost sociopath."

"Good luck!" Sasami said as she went back to her regular routine.

Justin gave her a friendly nod and made his way out of the kitchen. He was curious as to how Washu figured out Ryo-ohki was in his own bedroom. He realized that she wasn't going to give him a straight answer; perhaps he didn't deserve it yet. In fact, that made the most sense out of everything else considering that he's two days into this endeavor. No one should expect an answer to every question. And yet it continued to nibble at his thoughts.

"Don't overwork yourself Ayeka," Justin said as he pulled Washu's device out of his pocket, giving it a click.

Ayeka turned around from watching television and gave Justin a sour look, "Is that supposed to be a joke?"

"Is it?" Justin replied as he walked through the door, never bothering to turn around and look her in the eyes. Answering her question with a rhetorical one was the perfect insult, or at least the best one he could think up right on the spot.

"Ryo-ohki?" Justin asked as soon as the door sealed shut behind him, "You in here? We've got work to do."

A slight disturbance began moving under the blanket on Justin's bed. He immediately deduced that Ryo-ohki was all snuggled up underneath his comforter.

"Hey, wake up," Justin repeated.

The small animal meowed as she poked her head out and starred at Justin in front of her. Justin removed the comforter and noticed a couple dozen partially eaten carrots littering his bed sheets. Perfect…

"Well, looks like I'm not the only one who partied hard last night," Justin said, giving her a friendly scratch behind the ears, "at least I remembered my promise to get you some carrots."

Justin sighed as he looked around his room once more; nothing had changed since this morning, except for the obvious fact that he overlooked an animal being in his room, everything was exactly where he had left it. He went over to his dresser and knelt down, taking out several unopened cases of beer and placing them on the floor next to him. Justin figured it would be a good idea to go ahead and clean his room up, starting with the carrots. He took the empty plastic bag and started tossing pieces of the half-eaten vegetables into it. Ryo-ohki gave Justin a somber look, almost as if she wanted to save them for later. Justin couldn't help but look at her like a pet, yet at the same time there was no mistaking that this was a highly intelligent, sentient being. The process by which, was entirely unknown to Justin and continued to bewilder him. Ryo-ohki started crawling around Justin's bed, stretching her limbs in the process. Justin made his way around the room and continued collecting the assortment of trash, until finally tying the bag up and placing it next to his dresser. That would have to do for now.

"Ryo-ohki," Justin said, "Did you know that Ryoko is missing?"

The cabbit merely cocked her head to the side. She looked as if she had no idea what Justin was talking about. Could she have somehow forgotten as well?

"Washu has asked me to find her, and I can't do that without your help. Are you with me?" Justin asked as he sat down next to her.

Ryo-ohki meowed with excitement as she jumped off the bed and made her way towards the door.

"I guess that's a yes," Justin said.

He opened the door and followed Ryo-ohki into the living room, making sure not to step on her as she happily danced around his feet. Now that Justin had finally begun breaking ground in this investigation of his, he was starting to feel slightly apprehensive on where Ryoko could be. He found it to be very odd, for a woman of her capacity, that she'd just go missing so easily. Something was obviously amiss. Then there was the business concerning the mystery of Washu. It was clear to Justin that she was brilliant in almost every way, but what was perplexing was just how she was able to draw from such a large knowledge pool with seemingly minimal effort. Justin had to constantly remember that Washu isn't from this planet, but she's still very human in nature; the only logical conclusion he could deduce is that her knowledge is simply beyond that of any mere earthling. He was just dying for answers on immeasurable levels. The video that he was shown earlier was truly disturbing; for some reason Justin couldn't help but wonder if all of this is connected. There was only one way to find out.

"Ayeka," Justin said as he made his way to the front door, "If anyone asks where I am, tell them I'm looking for Ryoko."

"Of course," Ayeka responded without turning around. It was clear that she was far too into her television show to properly receive the message.

Justin walked through the front door, his beautifully packed lunch in hand and Ryo-ohki jumping around at his feet. The chilly morning air pierced his bones and instantly gave him goosebumps. He stared out into the sun, his mind wondering with the clouds. Something inside was not settling well with his mind; yet his determination still held true.

He picked up Ryo-ohki and held her in front of his face, "So what, just like last time, do I just…throw you?"

The adorable animal simply meowed, her ears twitching slightly.

"I'm just going to assume that's a yes," Justin replied. This was ridiculous. Who throws an animal careless in the air?

He took Ryo-ohki in his dominant right hand and cocked his arm back. With an uneasy breath he took a step forward and launched her straight into the air as hard as he could manage. As Ryo-ohki ascended into the air, Justin witnessed the exact same intriguing metamorphosis take place in front of him. Within a few moments of time, the four winged, symmetrical ship had returned and idled several hundred feet in the air above him. A sensation of weightlessness overtook his body once again, and upon looking down Justin could see himself steadily rising above the ground below. He held his breath and looked directly up, a slight cerebral impression tingling in his brain. A serene beam of light consumed his body; when his feet finally came into contact with a solid surface once again, Justin opened his eyes and found himself back on the bridge, the same reflecting onyx tiled floor laid below.

All around him holographic displays were jumping to life, each one displaying critical amounts of data from various parts of the ship. The spherical chamber truly was a work of genius by anyone's standards. This particular design allowed for a nearly three hundred and sixty degree tactical view of the environment around the operator. It became apparent to Justin that Ryo-ohki was built for more than just traveling the stars; she was a warship. It all made sense, considering the complex and intricate systems that she possessed: advanced cloaking, telemetric data streaming and mass levitation. The only thing Justin couldn't identify based on looking at the screens alone, was where the weapons command console was located, or even where the weapons batteries themselves were located. It was possible, and most probable, that Ryo-ohki possessed an energy-based firing system. All of this only bought up more questions that Justin would have to eventually prod Washu for. She was more than just a beautiful, incredibly brilliant red-headed scientist; just like everyone, she had secrets, and rightfully so.

"Ryo-ohki," Justin said in an affirming voice, "give me a full functional diagnostics report on your systems." He had no clue how to command a ship, but he felt confident that he was at least above the learning curve.

More holographic screens sprung into three dimensional space in front of Justin. Endless amounts of data appeared before him. Out of sheer intrigue, he placed his hand in front of one of the monitors and made a sweeping motion, much like he witnessed Washu performing in her lab. Sure enough, the monitor swept away and disappeared, another one taking its place. The operating system was like one massive touch screen, except of course without the screen; technology straight out of science fiction. He glided through screen after screen, quickly sifting through each diagram and flowchart until he finally found something convincing that resembled a diagnostics report. The ship appeared to be operating at seventy eight percent power, with all four engines idling at twenty five percent: perfectly in the green zone. The energy production outweighed the energy consumption, naturally making Ryo-ohki an incredibly efficient work of art.

"I apologize in advance Ryo-ohki; I'm not sure if Washu or Ryoko treats you like this, but I just want to make sure everything runs smoothly," Justin said, looking up towards the diamond structures hover above his head.

Ryo-ohki released an energetic meow as several of the crystalline rhombuses made their way to Justin's eyelevel. In each side of the prism, Justin could see Ryo-ohki's face in her cabbit form. He followed the prisms to the front of the bridge, where Ryoko's piloting system was located. It appears that Ryo-ohki was giving Justin permission to pilot her manually.

"Are you sure?" Justin asked curiously, "I don't really see myself as pilot material; but sure, I'll give it a go."

Just carefully placed his hands on both of the metallic spheres; incredibly enough, he could somehow feel the weight of the ship in his hands. He rotated the two spheres forward in unison with a gentle persuasion. He could instantly feel the ship accelerating forward, the real time cameras in front of him showing the landscape below rapidly passing him by. The monitors displayed all four engines spiking to thirty three percent increased output. All other systems remained nominal.

"Oh hell, it's just like a zero-turn lawnmower," Justin laughed, mainly at the ridiculous connection he just made to a primitive piece of machinery - compared to the complexity of Ryo-ohki.

Justin continued the acceleration until he was flying at around Mach one. He wanted to at least get above the clouds before trying anything stupid. He pulled both spheres toward him, the ship tilted almost twenty degrees backward; Justin had to reposition his feet as to not fall over. Ryo-ohki continued climbing.

"Alright Ryo-ohki, talk to me. How are we going to find Ryoko?" Justin asked.

The ship climbed to thirty thousand feet, where Justin finally decided to level her out. He didn't much look or feel like it, but Justin was a natural. Ryo-ohki remained quiet, either from contemplating Justin's question or out of not knowing the answer. Justin noticed a screen appear to his right, a satellite view of the earth quickly coming into view. Ryo-ohki was trying to find Ryoko, but she was literally searching the entire planet, so it could take a while. He watched as she scanned multiple continents at once, all results turning up empty. The situation was beginning to feel strange, if not stranger than it had previously been.

"There has to be something we're missing," Justin pondered as he walked away from the piloting console, "Controls are all yours Ryo-ohki; I need time to think. Make sure we're properly cloaked and undetectable on radar, the last thing we need is the American government catching wind of our location, let alone the Japanese Defense Force."

Justin paced himself throughout the bridge, trying not to get motion sickness from looking at the cameras too often. He trusted Ryo-ohki, but something inside him was still paranoid that he would look outside and see a squadron of F-16's. It was an irrational thought, considering they weren't even in US airspace yet. For all Justin knew, someone could have caught sight of them when they were in South Carolina. Justin had to make sure that Ryo-ohki and everyone at the Masaki House were never discovered. Everyone knows what happens in a movie when an alien species is found living among humans. Considering the year that Justin was currently living in, it's unlikely that any story could have gotten out. After all, the internet is still a fairly new concept on this planet for the general public. Justin needed to sit down and think. He looked around and noticed that the chair he was sitting in yesterday had been moved to the starboard observation deck. He decided to go have a seat in the likelihood that inspiration would coming looking for him; or anything really that would cause an epiphany. Without looking he threw all of his weight into the chair, only to have a blunt object meet his ass cheek.

"What the hell?" Justin grunted as he went to grab the object from under his posterior, "Ah, at least that answers one question."

It, from what Justin could decipher, was Kiyone's missing weapon. A small pistol, very articulate in design and obviously battery fed. There wasn't a magazine to feed into the handgrip, nor was there a slide or side chamber for ejecting projectiles. Clearly, this was another energy weapon; technology people on earth are currently dreaming of. Justin had his epiphany.

"Ryo-ohki…"Justin said anxiously, "You don't happen to have a system's flight log of where Ryoko and I traveled to last night, do you? I need to know where the last place I was until we decided to come home."

A screen appeared in front of Justin, showing a long and detailed list of where Ryo-ohki stopped last night; what intrigued Justin the most, was that each stop was logged with the specific time. Justin realized that he was treating Ryo-ohki more like a computer than an intelligent life form, but he couldn't help but exploit her extraordinary capabilities. He certainly didn't see Ryoko using any of these tools yesterday; perhaps she didn't require the need for them, seeing that it's possible Ryoko and Ryo-ohki have been together for quite some time now. The more information that flowed in front of Justin, the more and more worried he was becoming; he could feel it in the depths of his gut, his instinct. How on Earth could Ryo-ohki leave Ryoko behind, take Justin back to the Masaki House, and then not go back after her?

"Ryo-ohki, I really wish we could communicate, because this isn't looking good at all," Justin said, his fortitude beginning to waver, "according to your logs the last place we visited was…my house? But why, why would we have gone back there? There's nothing there. Oh, and there's also another weird stop: The University of Tokyo? I wonder what could possibly be there?"

Justin gripped the gun in his hand tightly, the weapon just being another piece of the puzzle. He was beginning to think that maybe he really did shoot Ryoko. Justin sprung out of the chair and rushed over to the piloting console once again.

"Ryo-ohki, give me the fastest course to my home," Justin said as he tightly gripped the metallic spheres in his hand.

He watched as the navigation screen to his left began plotting the best courses to take, several lines were drawn throughout the globe in a three dimensional representation. A few seconds later a final solution was drawn: space. Justin rechecked the data once again. There was no error. The fastest way from Japan to his home in South Carolina was to enter Earth's low orbit and make a high velocity re-entry. There was only one problem. Such an object the mass and speed at which Ryo-ohki would be re-entering the atmosphere would light up all over United States Military Satellites. The US Air Force base at NORAD would catch wind of the unidentified flying object and instantly scramble fighter jets to pursue and destroy. Once Justin realized this, he could feel his heart rate increase steadily.

"We need to enter the atmosphere quickly enough to where US satellites won't detect us; but also to where we can regain stealth capability as soon as possible. Can you do that?" Justin asked Ryo-ohki.

The crystal rhombuses danced around in unison, signifying an agreeing response.

"Very well then," Justin replied as he regained control of the ship, "It looks like I'm about to become the youngest earthling in space."

In reality, Justin's craving to enter space was greater than his fear of being detected by any military force. He was very confident in the alien technology he was flying around, even though he hadn't witnessed Ryo-ohki's weapons first hand, he somehow knew that this warship could go toe to toe with any fighter jet in the world. With a deep breath, Justin pushed higher into the atmosphere, forcing each engine to sixty percent output. The further he pushed, the harder gravity pulled down on him. Luckily enough, Ryo-ohki's engineering allowed him to survive orbital exit and re-entry without the need for training for specialized suits. The cameras outside began to show nothing but a dark blue hue as Ryo-ohki finally broke through the mesosphere and soon the exosphere. Justin hadn't realized it until now, but for the entire ascent Ryo-ohki had locked the metallic orbs in place so he could have something to hold onto. Within an instant, the two were in space and gazing out into the abyss, the only light coming from the sun. As much as Justin wanted to stay up here forever, he knew there was work to be done.

"Prepare for re-entry Ryo-ohki, I want this nice and smooth, and preferably where I don't turn into jelly," Justin said as he leveled out the ship, "I don't see it to be a particularly good idea for me to be standing up when we hit the atmosphere again, so I'll let you take over from here. Thanks though, Ryo-ohki, for giving me this opportunity; truly once in a lifetime."

Justin went back to the observation deck and sat back down into the chair. He couldn't help but stare out into the solar system, his childlike imagination springing back to life. It was hard for him to imagine the diversity of life out there that his own civilization were completely unaware of. Humanity had only just begun to break the boundaries of science, and here was Washu with nearly the key to the whole damned universe. Here Justin was, sitting inside the bridge of one of the most sophisticated works of art that imagination was capable of. He felt as if his entire species was insignificant. It was at that moment that he realized that, perhaps, he didn't want to go back to his universe. Perhaps it was a better idea to stay in this universe, and be a part of something greater. Even though he had no memory of the life from where he come from, he was adamant on believing extraterrestrial life had yet to be identified, especially on this scale. Amidst all this chaos that Justin had gone through within the past couple of days, this was a defining moment for him. If he had the choice to, he would stay, leaving behind whatever family waited for him, whatever life he may have had.

Ryo-ohki started meowing with excitement, and Justin turned around in his chair to see what all the fuss was about. The global map was blinking. Ryoko had been found, and she was very close to Justin's home. This was either going to be very good or very bad. Best case scenario, Ryoko is passed out somewhere in the neighborhood and away from any human contact. The less people see her, the better.

"Alright, this is good news. On your mark Ryo-ohki," Justin said as he strapped himself into his chair.

Justin concentrated on the aft cameras as he witnessed the beautiful blue marble approach closer and closer into the screen. He still held Kiyone's gun tightly in his hand, a part of him growing more and more apprehensive. An instant later Ryo-ohki broke into the atmosphere. Justin felt like he was on the most intense carnival ride of his life; and this wasn't helping the whole issue with his hangover either. The force of gravity taking control over his body once more was severely agitating his already uneasy mind. He gripped the gun even tighter so it wouldn't slip out of his hands. Once Ryo-ohki breached into the stratosphere, she immediately re-engaged her stealth systems. The intense vibrations ceased and Justin could see an entirely different land mass rapidly becoming larger in view: North America. So far, so good. No Air Force fighters had shown up on radar. They may have seen a blip, but it was probably gone just as fast as it showed. It was unbelievable how efficient Ryo-ohki was; Justin was continually floored by it all. Within a minute Ryo-ohki had successfully gotten both of them safely within a mile of Ryoko's last known location.

"I'll need you to put me down as close to Ryoko as possible, I'll then go and search for her on foot from there," Justin said, looking up at the crystals, "Got me?"

The oscillating rhombuses meowed in return. Another sign for yes, Justin assumed.

"Good, stay close to me and remained undetected," Justin responded, "Whenever you're ready."

Justin made his way towards the center of the bridge and gave Ryo-ohki the signal. He immediately felt the sensation of weightless rush back into his body, followed by a white light. When he reopened his eyes, Justin was in front of the neighboring forest beside the remnants of his house. He instantly got an uneasy feeling. Justin readied the weapon in his hands, sweeping the area for any possible hostile activity. But there was nothing, and that was the biggest problem of all. There were no people outside, no sound of cars driving by, just silence. Even the sky above him seemed to have been drained of life.

"Ryoko!" Justin screamed, "I know you've probably got beef with me, so go ahead, I'll give you one free punch, just not the face!"

No response. Justin was hoping that Ryoko was mad enough at Justin to easily accept that offer and come out of hiding, or wherever she could have been. Justin pointed the pistol into the air, pulled the trigger, and fired off a single energetic projectile into the air. Birds in the surrounding area immediately took off flying in all directions. They fled from every position except the forest. Justin looked towards the edge of the tree line, trying to study any potential disturbances by humans. Upon looking closer, he noticed several imperfections in the vacant field of grass in front of the trees. It was obvious to see, that in the waist high vegetation, that someone had managed to wade their way through it.

Justin swallowed the lump forming in his throat and made his way into the forest, the gun slightly shaking in his hand. He felt stupid; what was there to be afraid of? The silence was far too much for him to handle. Every gut instinct was telling him to run. Silence meant a predator was near. But then again, what if Justin was the predator? His fear all of a sudden became illogical. His mind was racing almost as fast as his heart. No matter how he tried, Justin couldn't control his breathing or any of his other vitals. He was simply consumed with fear; and yet he pressed on for reasons completely unknown to him. The further he went into the forest, the more destruction he saw. At some points, several areas of the forest were completely cleared; trees had fallen down and some were even smoldering. Smoldering from what, a fire? Small craters dented the landscape around any and every clearing Justin laid his eyes upon. The place looked like a warzone.

Suddenly, upon his next step, Justin accidentally tripped over a tree root that had managed to break through the ground. He hit the forest bed so suddenly that he didn't even have time to react. By the time he figured out what happened, he was already picking himself up off the ground. That's when he saw it. Justin neck hairs stood up on end as he noticed a dried pool of dark liquid nestled into the soil at his feet. He knelt down next to it and placed his shaky hands down onto the stained soil. He didn't want to believe what he was seeing. Justin brought a sample of the soil up to his nose and inhaled slightly.

The sample instantly crumbled to the ground.

Iron: the smell of iron.

_Blood. _

Justin looked ahead of him and noticed several other small patches of dried blood staining the foliage all around him. It was a blood trail, but was it intentional? Justin readied his weapon once again and pursued deeper into the forest. Adrenaline was starting to take over. When an animal feels threatened, it will do two things: either shut down and die, or work based off of instinct and survive. Justin wasn't going to die, not when he had a choice in the matter. Especially not when had wielded a powerful weapon in his hands. He dove his way through branches and tall brush, making sure that he was still following this eerie trail of blood. His mind was racing; his thoughts coming too fast to process. What could all of this mean? Justin screamed for his legs to run faster, regardless of how many briar bushes were cutting into his skin. He didn't care. Justin was going to find Ryoko; but why? The question raced through his mind perpetually: why was he so determined to find her? Justin was also heavily relying on Ryo-ohki at this point. He hoped that she was managing to keep up with him through this dense, southeastern forest region. Justin broke through another layer of brush and came across another clearing with more signs of a vicious battle. He frantically looked around the clearing for signs of life.

There she was.

"Ryoko!" Justin yelled as he sprinted to her position.

She was propped up against a tree and unconscious. Justin ran over to her to make sure that she was still alive.

"Hey, hey!" Justin bellowed as he started reaching for a pulse, "Oh god what the fuck is going on here?"

Justin swallowed another lump in this throat. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. Ryoko laid in front of him, badly beaten and bruised, lacerations across most of her body. Her pilot's uniform covered in forest mud and dried blood. He placed his ear on Ryoko's chest and listened for a heartbeat. Proud and strong; Ryoko was still alive and ticking. He parted her hair to the side and started cleaning up the mud caked on the side of her face. There was a slight salty residue underneath her eyelids; it was apparent that Ryoko had been crying. Justin couldn't see how this was possible. Ryoko was indestructible; she had proven such when she blocked several bullets like it was child's play. She could fly and shoot lasers from her hands. She has the most badass ship Justin has ever seen. What could have done this to her?

"Please wake up!" Justin cried, shaking Ryoko by her shoulders.

Ryoko delicately opened her eyes and let out a weak exhale of breath. She made eye contact with Justin.

Justin looked at her and sighed in relief, "Holy shit you scared the hell out of me. What happened?"

Ryoko's eyes widened to that of a frightened child. She immediately threw Justin off of her. Justin rolled several feet away, losing his gun in the process.

"Stay back!" she weakly screamed, beginning to cough up blood.

Justin was perplexed by what he was hearing, "Ryoko, what is wron-"

"I said stay back!" Ryoko interrupted, "don't you come any closer you monster."

Justin's heart withered and his blood froze within his veins.


	5. Chapter 5: A Missing Space Pirate Part 2

Life As I Knew It

Chapter Five

"A Missing Space Pirate, Part 2"

The southern sun was beginning to set, its rays losing the ability to penetrate the tree line with every passing moment. A calm breezed weaved its way through the never ending timber, gently moving the limbs with its soothing sound. Down below on the ground, however, the mood was something much more undesirable. For two people could not tear their gazes off of the other, each soul utterly in a panicked state. One was hell bent on defending her life; the other was lost in the transition of confusion that lay in an intangible wake. Around them, signs from a recent battle dotted the landscape. Trees still smoldered with red hot coals, small craters left scars in the forest bedding and trails of smoke lingered randomly about.

Ryoko's breathing was rapid and inconsistent, a tale tell sign of possible internal bleeding and even lung damage. Yet here she was, standing defiant as ever in the face of this stranger before her. Ryoko's knees trembled with weakness, barely able to stabilize the forces of her own weight. Her eyes, while glazed over with the adrenaline induced spirit of a warrior, were otherwise lucid. She wouldn't die until she knew Justin would as well; there was almost no mistaking that.

Justin's mind was unable to comprehend the situation that constantly unfolded before him. All he could do was stand there and stare blankly at Ryoko's fierce composure. His mind was locked up; his senses were overloaded several times their capable capacity. He ran the numbers through and through and every time he reached a conclusion that made less and less sense. Justin was fully aware of the destruction around him, the extreme physical harm that had befallen Ryoko, but never in his wildest dreams could he believe that he was the cause of this. There was just no way.

"Ryoko?" Justin whispered, trying to remain calm, "I need you to focus and tell me what happened here. I need to know what all this is about. Please, tell me."

Ryoko took another cautious step back, tears welling up in the corner of her eyes. No, she couldn't let him get inside of her head again. For all she knew, Justin had planned this out all along. This was her fault, she should have seen the warning signs in front of her; she shouldn't have been so easy to lay trust on someone again. Hell, Ryoko thought, it was even possible that Justin was a bounty hunter, here to capture her and claim the luxurious reward on her corpse. Given that this was true, then Justin was the cruelest and most cunning person Ryoko had ever met. It would mean he was vicious enough to make him seem harmless, then psychologically and physically tear you apart until you are too weak to fight. But what was this game he was playing now? Was it just another part of his twisted nature?

Ryoko finally found room in her head to formulate a response, "Are you working alone? Who sent you here? Tell me now."

"Who…sent me here?" Justin replied confused, "Don't you remember me telling Washu how I got here? I don't remember anything."

"Don't play games with me boy," Ryoko scoffed, "nothing you say is going to help you get out of here alive, so you might as well confess everything now while I grant you the opportunity to clean your filthy conscious."

Something was definitely wrong here. This had to be some sort of mistake, Justin thought. Was Ryoko even coherent enough to see her own surroundings?

"Ryoko, I need you to calm down," Justin said frantically, "There's been some kind of misunderstanding and I really want to help you through it. But I need you to tell me what the hell happened here!"

"Just look at me!" Ryoko screamed, "You did this! All of this! And now you have the balls to try and play innocent while you come back and finish the job? Get real!"

Ryoko extended her right hand out in front of her, palm facing downward to the ground. Her eyes narrowed to a razor-like precision. A red beam of light assembled itself out of thin air. She grabbed the saber, clutching it will all of her might.

"Ryoko!" Justin yelled as his eyes widened.

"Go to hell!" Ryoko bellowed as she lunged forward.

The instinctive nature inside of Justin's core screamed from deep down, forcing him to dive out of Ryoko's mad dash towards him. He collided with the unstable ground beneath him, feeling a dull pain reveal itself from the impact of the fall. There was no doubt in Justin's mind, that if Ryoko was in prime fighting condition that this would have been over in mere seconds. But he couldn't let her fight, not in the horrible condition that she was in. He reached for Kiyone's gun on his hip, but to no avail; it was lost somewhere in the clearing.

The adrenaline was kicking back into Justin's veins, he was no longer thinking, just reacting to Ryoko's assault. She came at him again with another thrust with her blood red saber. With just precious feet to spare Justin dodged out of her way once again, saving his life in the process. He could feel the heat emanating from her weapon, a sensation that was rather unnerving. All it took was one blow from that thing, and he was finished. The weapon didn't appear to have any noticeable power source, it just was.

Justin hurdled towards the ground once more, landing again with every lack of gracefulness he could muster. Ryoko wouldn't seem to let up, and it occurred to Justin for the first time that she actually wanted him dead. As soon as he went to throw himself back up from off the ground, Justin noticed Kiyone's pistol lying in the dirt next to him. Finally, this was a chance for him to mount a proper defense, and maybe even possibly talk some sense into this woman. He scrambled for the weapon, managing to snag it while barely escaping another attack from Ryoko. This time was entirely too close for comfort. The residual heat coming from the blade managed to burn his right forearm, and the smell of singed flesh entered his nose. It was definitely a disconcerting wakeup call that if Justin made one wrong move it was over.

Ryoko noticed the weapon in Justin's hands and instantly hesitated to attack further; she knew all too well what that particular weapon was capable of. Justin primed the gun and pointed it straight at Ryoko's chest. He knew that answering Ryoko with violence of his own would only dissolve the already crumbling situation, but he felt like this was his only option at any forms of diplomacy.

"I may have lost my memory of who I was before I came here," Justin broke the silence, still pointing the gun at Ryoko, "But I know for a damn fact, that the person I am now is incapable of murdering another human being."

The space pirate lowered her blade, still staring at Justin with eager eyes, "I can't…" Ryoko cried as she held her head in her hand, "I can't tell if you really are _him _or not. You act the exact same. Even the way you look at me is identical."

"The way I look at you?" Justin responded, perplexed.

Ryoko looked back up, "That's why…I just can't allow you to live. I can't take that chance. I'd be putting everyone I care about in danger."

"Don't do this," Justin commanded as he gripped the gun tighter in his shaking hands.

Ryoko stared at her blade, "I don't seem to have a choice."

She closed her eyes and dashed forward. For a moment time stood still. Justin took aim and pulled the trigger. The gun unleashed a volley of high intensity projectiles straight towards Ryoko's position. With cat-like speed she dodged each one, flashed out of sight and then reappeared right in front of Justin. With no time to spare she swung her blade straight into his weapon, dismantling it into several irrecoverable pieces. Justin barely had time to react as Ryoko tackled him straight into the ground. He felt his bones crack as their combined weight crashed into the cold earth beneath them. At that very moment a small piece of paper managed to fly out of Justin's pocket, landing harmlessly next to him in the soil. He was too busy to notice it while trying to fend off Ryoko, who was trying desperately to get that blade of hers into his chest. Justin was terribly surprised as to how strong Ryoko was even in her fragile, nearly fatal state. His muscles strained against her might until his veins pumped acid, yet she still continued closer to his chest. Then, for some reason, Ryoko stopped.

She looked on the ground next to Justin's head and noticed the familiar piece of paper. In sheer curiosity she unfolded it, and immediately regretted the decision.

"You didn't…" Ryoko choked as she cupped her hand over her mouth, "You bastard."

It took just a second for Justin to notice just what exactly she was holding in her hand. When he finally recognized it, he knew for a fact that he had failed. There was nothing on his side that could possibly save his life now. The evidence against him was overwhelming, and Justin was convinced that Ryoko would never see reason. He laid his head back down onto the cold ground and stared into the sky as tears rolled down Ryoko's face. In his peripheral vision Justin could still see her blade glowing in her hands. At any moment now, he knew that it would be piercing straight through his heart, and the last thing he would ever see was the broken shell of a woman who he wanted nothing more than to help.

"Ryoko," Justin softly spoke, but unable to look her in the eyes, "you know you don't need to do this."

"Please don't speak," Ryoko replied, the agony in her soul was almost palpable, "Please don't speak, so you can die with what little amount of dignity you may have left"

At that moment Justin stared into Ryoko's eyes, but he was unsure of what he saw. It was déjà vu all over again, with the feeling of encumbrance on his mind that diluted all sense of what was real. He could feel his heart beating, his body swimming in a vast ocean of adrenaline. Was this how the body prepared for death? Everything was euphoric and surreal.

Ryoko lifted her blade, the energy crackling just above Justin's sternum. Her breathing was becoming more erratic, and she could feel the warm flow of blood consistently leaving her open wounds. There wasn't much time left for her, and yet she hesitated to inflict the final blow on this boy lying beneath her mercy. It seemed that her humanity was the only thing stopping her. She just couldn't determine whether he was the right one. After all, how could you tell? There was absolutely no room for error here. With every passing moment Ryoko weakened while her indecision grew. The blade began to uncontrollably shake in her hands. It was now or never. Ryoko closed her eyes. It was now or –

Just then, Ryoko fell unconscious and her weakened body plummeted on top of Justin's chest; the blade harmlessly dispersed into radiant streams of matter around them, then slowly faded upwards into the sky like flower pedals. Justin just lied there, staring up at the orange-stained sky above him. Slowly but surely, his senses began to return, and the world around him became more tangible than before; Justin continued to stare into the sky, through the atmosphere and even through this very universe. What had just happened here? He felt as if this world had just played a sick joke on him. It would seem, however, that while his near death experience had just passed, Ryoko was now about to experience one of her own. Justin could feel the warm blood against his clothes; the sheer amount of it frightened him. It was simple logic: the more blood you lose the closer to death you are; and Ryoko had already lost a lot.

Justin propped himself up, carefully cradling the unconscious space pirate in his arms. His hands were already tarnished with Ryoko's blood, and she had so many wounds it was extremely difficult to determine where all of it was even coming from. The thick smell of iron kept his adrenaline pumping and his senses alive. Ryoko looked so frail like this; it was almost as if she was a different person entirely. Or perhaps, this was the gentle little girl that really existed behind so many thick layers of her personality. It was an honestly fucked up observation, given the circumstances, but Justin was finally able to recognize a part of her that was real. Still, the situation was entirely unbelievable, yet it was happening. Justin tried hard to not allow himself to become choked up. He needed to concentrate.

Immediately he turned his attention to the sky, looking for any possible signs of Ryo-ohki. He had no idea how far into the forest he was, and he had already forgotten which direction he had approached from.

"Ryo-ohki!" Justin screamed, his vocal chords already straining from the effort.

Suddenly, Ryo-ohki exploded into view above, raining down a heavy front of warm air currents onto the forest bedding below. Justin delicately wrapped Ryoko in his arms and stood up; strangely, she felt remarkably light. Ryo-ohki immediately sent down a blinding ray of light onto Justin's position below. He closed his eyes and let the sensation of brief weightlessness consume him. A second later Justin felt the solid surface of onyx flooring collide with his feet. He immediately laid Ryoko down onto the cold floor and made his way towards the central console. Several crystalline rhombuses appeared from the abyss above his head, and Justin observed in wonder as they began to dance around Ryoko's unconscious body with an elegant cadence. The crystals all began to beam out strange waves of light around her body.

"Is that helping her?" Justin asked.

The dancing crystals all seemed to meow in unison.

"Good," Justin replied, "Let's set a course for home then; I don't care how fast you go! Break a world record if you have to."

The ship instantly began gaining altitude and quickly took off into the night sky. Justin felt his legs adjust to the change in inertia all around him. The display in front of him showed their current position in relative distance from their destination. Ryo-ohki was on auto-pilot at this point, but he couldn't seem to get his mind off the idea that something was bound to go wrong. As the adrenaline started to finally subside within his veins, Justin began to grow more aware of the situation, but more importantly, what Ryoko had said earlier. He began replaying the events through his mind over and over, trying desperately to find an answer hidden deep within. There were volumes of demanding questions spinning through his head right now. What exactly did Ryoko mean? Her words continued to perpetuate and confuse.

"I'm not a bad person…" Justin quickly mumbled to himself.

He turned around and walked across the bridge over to Ryoko. By now, Ryo-ohki had Ryoko fully encased in a strange looking field made of pure energy. Her wounds had stopped bleeding, yet she still lay in a noticeable pool of blood that reflected eerily against the onyx. Another crystal descended from the ceiling, this time taking direct notice towards Justin. The rhombus circled around him, almost as if inspecting his body. Justin was confused, but didn't question Ryo-ohki's authority. As the small figure scanned his body, Justin began to notice several irregularities in his own breathing. The realization was troubling. Was it internal bleeding?

"I knew you'd turn out interesting the moment I laid eyes on you; but I must admit that even this situation was quite the surprise to me," A familiar voiced appeared from behind.

Justin turned around and saw Washu staring back from one of the forward ship monitors. He wasn't sure what to say, let alone if saying anything was even a good idea to begin with.

Washu narrowed her eyes, "I saw everything down there just now. And I want to apologize in advance for betraying your trust, but since this morning I've had Ryo-ohki keeping an eye on you. In time, I hope you can forgive me."

"Forgive you for what?" Justin asked, his mind beginning to unravel.

"I guess we'll have to see won't we?" Washu answered cryptically, "Ryo-ohki, you know what needs to be done."

The rhombus that encircled Justin began emitting its own beam of light identical to the ones that surrounded Ryoko. Suddenly, it felt as if all the nerve endings in his body decided to fall asleep simultaneously, forcing him to his knees. Breathing became progressively harder as control over his body regressed. Justin looked up at Washu in the monitor; in his skewed vision he could tell that her eyes reflected remorse back into his own. His mind grew incredibly tired, and in this strange moment an overbearing sensation for sleep bombarded Justin's thought processes. The beam of light had casted a spell on him, and before long Justin was attempting to find a comfortable spot on the floor to rest his troubled being. His eyes, however, were still fixated on the monitor. The scientist stared back as she waited on the inevitable.

"But know this," Washu softly whispered, "I believe you, and I'll make sure that everything is going to be okay."

Justin winced at Washu's words; and then there was nothing but silence.

I reached my hand out into the abyss. Cold: that's what I felt moving around my skin. I had never really noticed it to be honest, the difference between hot and cold. In a sense, you could really only describe it as two literal opposites. It was equally interesting, how our bodies would always yearn for the contrary when one side of the spectrum faired too extreme for our liking. But cold was something entirely different. The tone of the world instantly changes, and a hint of silence overbears our surroundings. It opens up the mind to the idea of serenity; but also the idea of lifelessness. For in this environment there is no life around me, yet there is no struggle. There is only serenity.

At least that's what I felt as my motionless body drifted through this strange, empty volume. I had no idea where I was, or how I had gotten here. All I knew was that there was nothing to do in this plane of existence except to think. And that's what I had been doing for what seemed like days now. But it was difficult to think. Trying to recollect what had transpired over the past couple of days was like trying to find a single unique lego buried somewhere in a large cardboard box. When I closed my eyes and concentrated, I could see blurry images. It was possible these were parts of my memory, but I was too uncertain to bury that possibility as fact.

And yet I could dig further down, far into my past and see a vivid, crystal clear image of my closest loved ones. Amazing really, it was like standing in front of a television screen and watching a recording of your life played back to you. Embarrasing? Yes, much like those ancient video cassettes of our infant selves opening up presents on Christmas morning. While we would be serenaded by Fischer Price toys, our family members would be ogling over how adorably innocent we were. It honestly makes me red in the face to even think about it. Jump forward a few years, and the same cassette tape shows us riding a bike for the first time without training wheels; a sheer sign of positive childhood development.

All of these memories remained perfectly intact for me to access. It was as if I stood in front of a computer terminal with a cable hooked straight into my brain. The part that troubled me the most was my lack of ability to see the most recent events. Something was blocking me from seeing anything. So here I am, stuck in this place for days now and trying to figure out just what the hell was going on. I can't even begin to describe the eeriness of this place. There exists no light that I'm aware of, and yet I can see my body as if it was illuminated by stadium lights. There was no gravity either, so my body has been constantly drifting mindlessly like space debris. No sense of time either, at least not relative to the outside world. My watch refused to work here, so I could only go on instinct – something that didn't seem too reliable at this point. And what was most "intriguing" to me was that I felt like my body was _high_ on something. My subconscious tells me that I'm swimming in a massive pool of eviscerated irony. But what's so ironic?

I digress. Clearly my time spent here is already thinning out what's left of my sanity. I needed to figure out this little puzzle once and for all. Perhaps my vision was too poor to properly recognize the environment around me, but I had this strange sensation telling me that I was not alone here after all. My eyes were either playing tricks on me, or I truly was witnessing a dancing shadow that would sometimes cross paths with me. It was noticeable even in this realm of darkness; it was darker than black.

"Well, it's about time you noticed me," the voice finally called out.

"Is that you?" I replied.

There it was; the shadow was now clearly in front of me, staying just beyond my reach.

"Well now, that's quite an intriguing question indeed. What is 'you'? What exactly is the nature of this beast?"

Speaking in riddles, something I was already too familiar with in this place.

"Look at you! It's pathetic to see you like this; in this state of complete ignorance. I find it insulting that you can't even recognize me! Tell me, how long has it been since you've lost your memory: three days? Five? Ten?"

"I wasn't exactly keeping track," I responded.

Something was changing within the environment; I could feel a strange metamorphosis taking place in the time and space around me.

"Of course not. If only you knew what you were like before your little incident with the cosmos. My, it would probably be quite the shocker to you. I wonder what that poor excuse for a scientist or that wild haired beauty would think of you if they knew the truth."

"The truth?" I asked, my stomach starting to slowly churn.

The shadow in front of me began to grow, I could see its jet black outline slowly starting to engulf the surrounding area.

"Yes, the truth. It's a dangerous thing to a person in a situation like you. You do realize that the only reason you're still alive is because of Washu right? If you had stumbled upon this world at any other point in time, you'd be dead in a moment's notice. It was only through her scientific curiosity that Ryoko didn't cut you down. A part of her probably regrets that decision, I'd wager. I can see _them _right now, you know. You did quite the number on Ryoko; I'm pleasantly surprised that she even survived that grueling ordeal. But after all, she's survived me before."

_Ryoko_. That name sounds familiar. It's so hard to think.

"Of course, knowing you, you probably saved her life just so you can show her empty compassion before you murder her in her delicate condition. Oh, but of course her mother wouldn't allow that. You'd have to kill Washu first in order to get to Ryoko. And I'm sure the other residents in that lovely home would disagree with your actions as well; might as well kill them all too. And then…"

The shadow continued growing. I knew that it wanted to swallow me whole; and I was powerless to stop it.

"And then…you'd finally have to deal with that arrogant boy Tenchi Masaki. Oh how I despise him and his stubborn behavior. He doesn't even deserve to be cut down by the King of Jurai. But I'm in a predicament here, so I guess you will suffice."

I had to do something.

"So here is the plan, my brain dead brother: I'm going to get you out of this drug induced coma you're in, and you're going to follow my instructions exactly to the letter. If you don't, then I'll destroy every atom of your being."

But what could I even do? The darkness was beginning to close in.

"I understand the details of this little arrangement do seem somewhat biased towards myself, but I hope you can understand that I'm simply doing this for both our benefit. In time, I think you'll come to thank me. Now, let us begin…."


	6. Chapter 6: Prelude to Madness

I may have failed to mention this before, but the "[][][]" means that there's a brief skip in plot continuity.

Life As I Knew It

Chapter Six

"Prelude to Madness"

There exists in this universe quite the intriguing specimen that still remains anatomically mysterious to even the brightest minds. The specimen in question, of course, is named simply, "mass." But there is so much more to this seemingly sentient species then you'd ever witness under a microscope. It acts as a hive mind when it bonds with other pieces of mass. The more bonds there are, the stronger the intelligence becomes. This creates a problematic scenario, as you'd probably imagine, because eventually these little forms of life can (and will) overtake everything they can touch. Only a select few scientists have had the privilege of working with this form of life firsthand; even fewer have managed to publish written material regarding the subject. And there is only one, by the name of Doctor Washu Hakubi, who has managed to create something unlike anything ever seen before.

By far Washu's greatest achievement was the creation of her own daughter using the nefarious little life form. While mass may act within a hive mind mentality naturally, it can easily be swayed into becoming a single being. This action is performed by incorporating, like Washu's embryonic DNA for example, into the mass's genotype. Once the egg has been properly infused within the mass, the stem cell and DNA protocols take control, and the sentience becomes one. In other words, Ryoko is born. It is because of Ryoko's curious state of existence that she is able to survive for so long, rapidly regenerate her wounds, and of course retain her natural good looks. However, were it not for her mother's celestial prowess, Ryoko would have been dead thousands of years ago.

And were it not for her state of existence today, she'd be dead just the same. But Ryoko's uncanny ability for survival had come to no surprise to Washu. She had been through several grueling ordeals before, each one more terrifying than the last. And every time she managed to bounce back like nothing had ever transpired. But Washu felt as if this situation was different, at least psychologically for Ryoko.

Washu stared out into the emptiness of her lab.

It was definitely a hectic moment in time, something she wished could have been handled more gracefully. Just a few hours before dawn, Ryo-ohki had broken over the horizon, letting the entire region know that she was on her way home. Sasami was the first to wake up. Naturally, Ayeka followed in line until the whole house was wondering what all the commotion was. When Washu had made her way into the living room, everyone was already gathered outside and staring at Ryo-ohki hovering in the air. Washu had barked at everyone, demanding that they go back into their rooms. She constantly insisted that it was better if they didn't know; that it was _for their safety. _

"What a terrible excuse," Washu thought.

But none of them would budge, and there was no time to spare for the people on Ryo-ohki's bridge. With a heavy heart, Washu went in, and came out knowing exactly the kind of reaction that would follow. The questions: the constant barrage of questions and bewilderment on their faces. None of them would understand until a few days later of the entire situation. At that point, more questions still lingered, but the hysteria was temporarily quelled. It was obvious how concerned they all were, just by looking at their faces. Yet they waited patiently until Washu could reveal more; it was the best that could be asked.

She slowly sighed. There was no sense in dwelling on the past, not when the future needed her immediate attention.

Needless to say, the last two weeks have been a slow and winding one. Since then, both Ryoko and Justin have remained within a cold stasis under maximum security surveillance. Both of them lay suspended in a biological gelatin designed to not only heal the individual, but to preserve their cells as well. In a sense, an organism could remain unchanged for as long as the gel didn't expire in its effectiveness. This biogel was another one of Washu's unpatented and unknown lab experiments that yielded successful results, at least with Ryoko. Probability simply suggested that it would work the same with Justin; and so far her assumptions held true. According to the monitors, Ryoko and Justin had fully healed from their small skirmish only fourteen days ago. Even though Ryoko had suffered viciously more severe wounds, she had healed nearly three times faster than Justin – who had only sustained a few cracked ribs and minor internal bleeding.

Right now the outstanding issue on Washu's mind was the specifics of the attack. She had scanned Justin's body structure meticulously and repeatedly concluded that there was no physical way he could deal that kind of damage. There were absolutely no hints that he possessed super human strength or anything outside normal human physiology. And yet the image of Ryoko's beaten and broken body still flashed through Washu's mind. Whatever had attacked her was powerful and relentless.

Washu pulled up old video footage of when Justin had managed to sneak into her lab undetected. She had recorded the exact moments that his mind exhibited immense energy spikes, which eventually forced him unconscious. The image refused to leave her alone, mainly because this video directly disputes the idea that Justin was a _normal_ human being. Something was going on here that desperately needed to be figured out. The only real way to understand it all was for the event to happen a second time. The best likelihood of that even happening, however, was the recreate the variables that lead to it in the first place. This would prove difficult, however, because it would not only entail reviving Justin from his slumber, but it would also mean he'd have to drink to the point of blacking out again.

Something sparked inside Washu's brain. That was precisely what was going to happen.

She hopped out of her chair and started pacing around the lab. The little scientist had an idea that easily started evolving into a series of possible tests. If Washu could study Justin while he was under the effects of large quantities of alcohol, then there stood a good chance that he would not only remain harmless, but also influence the singularity event to happen again. She believed that blacking out due to alcohol was the key here. It was possible that this event was caused simply by a loss of control by Justin's conscious. Perhaps, Washu speculated, that this strange force blocking Justin's memory during that exact moment caused something else to happen as well, somewhat of a chain of events. But that still didn't explain the idea of his superhuman abilities or even how he can get past maximum security lab doors. But it was a start; and a start that Washu would pursue until the end.

The only problem now was waking either of them up. If Washu revived Ryoko first, there is a very large possibility that she'd want to kill Justin in the very first chance she got. On the other hand, if she revived Justin first, it was equally plausible that he'd be hostile as well. The only way to be sure nothing fatal happened to either of them was to wake them up in special restraints. And the best way to retrieve information from both of them at the same time was to put them together in the same room. Washu believed that if two enemies were forced to participate in dialogue that it would bring up several interesting tidbits of information that until then would be unbeknownst to Washu. The idea was invaluable and needed to be done almost immediately.

At that moment, Washu went to work on developing a special restraining mechanism for both Justin and Ryoko. She didn't want it to be inhuman or uncomfortable, because it was likely the two of them would remain in the restraints for a long period of time, or at least until Washu was satisfied with the information. It would have to be a small, spacial chamber. She paid special attention to Ryoko's restraints. The material needed to be proofed to the point where Ryoko couldn't physically force her way out, or use her powers to get out either. That would be the tricky part, but for Washu any challenge is a good challenge. Justin's restraining device would be much more conventional, but just in case she incorporated many of the same properties used in Ryoko's. There was no room for error here.

She summoned machinery equipment and various computing systems from all around the lab to her location and immediately got to work amassing the restraints. Within minutes she already had blueprints drawn up, her hands racing across the computer screen with pinpoint precision. The computers kept up with the pace, scanning each new vector file into the system. This in turn prompted the machines to begin making all the needed assembly pieces for Washu's creation to come together. The smell of burning metals and silicates filled the room as each piece was accurately cut into shape.

After an hour of non-stop work, Washu had easily crafted together two chambers capable of holding back the might of ten Ryokos. It was overkill, by all means, but overkill was something Washy prided herself on. After all, it was better safe (and to be ridiculous) than sorry. The finished product looked much like the wire framing of a three dimensional, vertical quadrilateral. The top and bottom of the container was made from strong pieces of metal, along with the same material guiding up and down the side as support. There were no walls to speak of. Instead, the restraining part of the device was designed to emit a wall of pure, impenetrable energy from all sides.

Washu made her way over to the capsules that housed both Justin and Ryoko. She pushed the release valve button, which began draining the biogel from the containers. Next, fresh water was rushed into the capsules to wash away all of the sticky substances within the gel itself. Once the gelatin had been completely absolved, a secondary valve opened up to pump in fresh oxygen. Since their incarceration, Washu had been providing ample amounts of nutrients to the two of them through IV tubes, and oxygen through common respirator masks in order to keep them perfectly healthy. When they finally returned to the world of the living, Washu would be able to question them without having to worry about feeding them a meal first. Without wasting time, she began the process of getting the two deadweights into their restraining harnesses. Once they were locked in place, and safe from any potential dangers, she injected the two of them with a minor adrenal stimulant.

Ryoko slowly opened her eyes and started looking around the room in confusion.

"_Mom_, are you there?" she weakly asked, her voice hoarse.

"I'm right here Ryoko," Washu said as she walked next to her restraining cell, "Don't worry; it's going to take a few minutes before you can see anything with clear vision again."

"Where am I?"

"Back in the lab, you've been here for two weeks," Washu replied.

"Two weeks?" Justin interrupted as he rubbed his weak eyes, "Washu, why has it been that long?"

"What is he doing here…?" Ryoko asked, her voice slightly wavering.

"Please remain calm, Ryoko. He wouldn't be here unless it was important to all of us," Washu tried to reassured her.

Ryoko started to push up against the sides of the container. The energized barrier slightly buzzed as she struggled harder against it. But the stasis hadn't given her new muscle tissue time to condition itself. Ryoko was still weak, and unable to break through. Not even her teleportation would work here. Justin remained silent as he listened to the space pirate in front of him desperately try to free herself. He didn't know if Ryoko wanted to attack him, or rather run away to safety. It tore him up inside seeing this change in her seemingly indomitable attitude. Either way, he was entirely overjoyed to be awake.

"Just to clarify, I'm still alive right?" Justin asked.

"As alive as possibly can be," Washu responded.

"Not for long…" Ryoko muttered to herself, still trying to find a way out of her specially made cage.

"She's not getting out of there, right?" Justin asked worriedly.

"You underestimate me," Ryoko snapped back.

Washu rubbed her temples, "I knew this was going to be frustrating. Alright, here is how it's going to be. I'm going to ask a series of questions and the two of you will answer honestly and to the best of your ability. Until then, the two of you will remain here until I'm satisfied. So Ryoko, get over it and accept it, you're not escaping. And Justin? Everything you do is being monitored; remember that."

Ryoko scoffed at Washu's speech and turned her head away in disgust. She couldn't believe she actually had to deal with this. But what upset her even more, was that after being forced into a deep sleep for two weeks, she was finally brought back and stuck in a cage only to be put to questioning. In Ryoko's mind, she was the victim here. She deserved the right to freedom, a good meal and the strongest liquor she could find. Justin's head was pounding. Technically speaking, he was the first successful human to go through Washu's phases of medical rehabilitation. That in itself was worthy of some sort of celebration, he just didn't realize his own role as a guinea pig.

Washu walked over to her hover chair, positioned it between Justin and Ryoko, and sat down.

"Justin, did you or did you not attack Ryoko?" she asked with a straight face, wasting no time to get down to business.

"I don't know," he replied, "but I'm pretty sure she'll tell you that I did. I could see it in her eyes that day."

Washu spun her chair around, "And Ryoko, is this the person who attacked you?"

"I…I don't know," she said as well, "I know it seems crazy, but I couldn't tell."

"Couldn't tell what?" Washu asked.

"She couldn't tell if I was the real one or not," Justin responded, "That's what you told me, right Ryoko?"

"That's right," Ryoko answered, "And I still don't know looking at you right now."

Washu leaned back in her chair, "That's…interesting; interesting and befuddling. Justin, tell me everything that you remember."

He shuffled around in his cell, trying hard to think his way through the flurry of memories rushing back to him.

"Well, I know that I had been feeling a little down. You know, what with the identity crisis and all that. I imagine Ryoko detected that and wanted to try and cheer me up, at least that's what I first assumed…"

[][][]

This was somewhat comical for me, as I was finally venturing into a part of the house I was too cautious to tread earlier this morning. I now feel like I'm allowed to be up here, even though they are the private rooms of the people that I've just met. The wooden planks ached as I rested my weight on each board; it was a familiar and comforting sound, almost as if the wood wanted to creak. Strangely enough, Mihoshi and Kiyone were nowhere to be found. They probably have some work concerning their jobs in the Galaxy Police; or maybe it's that they are in town shopping or something; whatever girls tend to do in their spare time. A part of me wanted to get to know Kiyone a little better than what I had managed to discover while talking with her at breakfast this morning. Out of the entire bunch that lived in this house, she seemed the most…stable. Not to mention, if she's a police officer then she most likely has a weapon, and I wouldn't mind seeing what alien technology does compared to standard human tech. It had become a strange curiosity of mine. If Kiyone possesses any kind of abilities that Ryoko showed off earlier today, then I know I won't be disappointed. This entire house is full of _aliens_, and I'm perfectly fine with that. Does that make me a strange person?

The second story was pretty much what you'd expect, a small hallway leading through a series of doorways, which sequentially lead to people's rooms. Portraits of what looked like the Masaki's were hung throughout the dark hallway, until I could find a light switch it was difficult to make out any distinct faces. Strangely enough, there seemed to be a female in many of the pictures. It appeared odd to me, considering no one had mentioned this woman before. Could this be Nobuyuki's wife? I guess I'll never know unless I ask somebody. A quick glance below one of the pictures and I finally managed to find a light switch. With a simple flick the entire hallway was finally illuminated with light. It's not necessarily that I couldn't guide myself through the upstairs without the light being on, I did it more or less out of principal I guess. I made my way to the third door and stood in front of it, my hand hovering just inches away from the door itself. I was once again anxious to see her face again. I stood there motionless, my mind trying to determine what the next plan of action was. It was silly really, because I already knew what I had to do. This ridiculous mental block that I'm experiencing was seriously getting in the way of me and my resolve. It made me feel weak and seemingly undesirable to be around. I took a deep breath. My hand forced its way closer towards the door and prepared to open it.

"What do you think you're doing?" A stern voice called from behind the door.

"Uh…." Was the only thing that left my mouth.

The door slid open and Ryoko quickly appeared on the other side, her posture giving me the impression that she was still awaiting the answer to her pervious question. I stared at her quizzically, my eyes squinting from the suddenness of her appearance – again.

"It's impolite to just barge into a girl's room without permission first." she said sarcastically.

Again, I just stood there, this time my mouth hanging wide open and my eyes staring at her without a single hint of blinking. I honestly didn't know what to say. What does a man do in this situation, laugh or cry from the cynical humor that this woman was capable of?

Ryoko's face soon lost its luster when she realized that I wasn't excitedly following along with her humor, "Relax kid I was joking. Come on in and have a seat, make yourself at home," she said with a reassuring tone.

Relived, I followed Ryoko into her room and was instantly greeted with the exact anti-thesis of everything this house's feng shui stood for. To put it plain and simple, her room was a complete mess and Ryoko seemed perfectly satisfied with her current living conditions. She proceeded to walk over to one of the chairs in the room, tossed a random assortment of clothing accessories through the air and sat down. I made my way over to the edge of her bed, being careful not to step on anything on my way there. Without really giving it much thought I sat down on the front of the mattress facing her and waited as it slowly adjusted to my weight. In the silence I was able to pick up the faint smell of alcohol floating somewhere in the air. There was probably an open container hidden in the room.

I tried not to let my eyes wander, because I knew for a fact that Ryoko's eyes were fixated on my own, and she was just waiting for me to start judging her. In fact, I bet she was counting on it so she could find something to say to me and create more of an awkward situation. It's true, however, that you can learn a lot about a person by the arrangement of both their living conditions outside and inside of their homes. Regardless something told me that Ryoko chose to live this way, it wasn't because of some character flaw of laziness, at least I don't think, that made her like this. If I had to guess, I'd say that Ryoko preferred this as a form of expressing some form of vivid individuality that I currently am unable to see. Either that, or I'm dead wrong and she's a lazy bum. To be perfectly honest, the mess didn't bother me; and I definitely came to the realization that Ryoko doesn't cater to society's standards. I respect that. Or maybe I am forcing myself to respect it because I don't want to deal with any repercussions from Ryoko. Needless to say, I might be thoroughly confused from the lack of logic in this delightful conundrum.

"Well?" Ryoko asked, effortlessly breaking the silence between us.

I tried to formulate a cohesive sentence but metaphorically fell flat on my face. "On second thought," I said while getting off her bed, "I'll come back later. Sorry to disturb you." I could easily feel my face getting flush while a decent amount of blood went straight into my brain, giving me a slight head rush.

I turned my head away from Ryoko and made my way for the bedroom door. For some reason my mind went completely blank and I had forgotten what I wanted to talk to her about. As soon as I rounded the door I was greeted by Ryoko standing in front of me in the hallway. Both her hands rested on her hips, her gaze upon me was that of restrained annoyance. I wasn't quite sure what to say, but it looked like she had something to talk about as well. I didn't try and walk past her merely because something needed to be said, and we both knew that.

"Now just wait a minute Justin," Ryoko said in almost a motherly voice, "I may not be like other women you've been around, but I can still tell when something is bothering a person. Now, what's wrong?"

I think that was the first time Ryoko had actually called me by name, other than 'kid.' It was a good change of pace, even though technically speaking she was right in her calling me that. For some reason my mouth decided to go dry, almost as if my saliva glands ceased functioning entirely. A certain demographic would describe such a sensation as cotton mouth, and dammit that was a good description of what I was feeling. However, I couldn't discern the real reason for this. As far as I could tell, both my heart rate and body temperature were all functioning normal, and I didn't feel the slightest bit out of balance so to speak. Yet something was obviously wrong.

I looked Ryoko in the eyes, "I don't know to be quite honest."

"That's not a satisfying answer," Ryoko replied, crossing her arms.

I looked down at the hardwood floor, "Well, it's really the only answer I have right now. Maybe when I get my memory back I'll have a better one for you. But right now, I just have intangible sensations that don't make any sense. It's not just you, it's this whole place, so don't feel bad."

When I looked back up to see Ryoko's response I noticed that she was looking down at the floor. Her arms were still crossed and she remained perfectly silent. She was in deep thought; I could tell she was thinking about _something_, but I just didn't have the guts to ask what it was. I couldn't help but shove my hands deep down into my pockets and stand there, trying to ride out the silence. My hands didn't feel comfortable just hanging there by my side, it was too awkward.

"You know what we need?" Ryoko said as she looked back up to me.

I thought about her question for a second before remembering what she mentioned to me back on the ship, "Let me guess, a stiff drink?"

Ryoko's face lit up, "Bingo! I'll be right back. Don't you go anywhere now."

Within an instant she vanished from my view and then reappeared almost as fast, this time with two plastic bags in both her hands and the biggest smile on her face.

"Are those my bags?" I asked.

"Mhmm," Ryoko grinned.

"Great, so you know how to get into my room with minimal effort, fantastic," I sarcastically replied. That's the last thing I need, looks like I'm sleeping light tonight.

"Oh just shut up and learn to enjoy yourself kid," she retorted back at me.

"That didn't really have any correlation to anything I just said," I replied, my head slightly shaking back and forth.

"Doesn't have to," she quickly shrugged.

Ryoko pulled a full liter bottle of Jack Daniels from my bag and held it up in front of me, almost as if she was toying with my mind, like a person holding up a tennis ball in front of a dog's face. I knew deep down that Ryoko was right; there wasn't much of anything else I could do to lay back and enjoy myself. I've already put far too much stress on myself, especially considering this is my first day here. There's no reason for me to be so damned introverted during a time like this. Let loose and have fun, give the dice and roll and accept however they fall. This isn't life or death, after all.

"You know what Ryoko? You're right…again. I shouldn't be this uptight and closed off. Let's go enjoy ourselves shall we?" I said while walking up to take the bottle.

Ryoko released an energetic laugh and slung her arm around my shoulder; "This is great," she said enthusiastically, "Do you know how long I've been trying to find a drinking buddy? We're going to have so much fun tonight, just you wait! I promise you won't be disappointed."

"No, I really don't know how long," I said.

"Of course not, and the question was rhetorical dumbass," Ryoko laughed.

"Right…" I replied, realizing my goof up.

The two of us walked together down the hallway, her strong arm almost forcefully guiding me to the stairs. I had absolutely no idea what this crazy woman had in store for me; and that made me more anxious than anything.

"We're going to eat first, right?" I asked Ryoko.

"And let the food soak up all the alcohol?" she replied, "No, we'll start now before dinner starts. Then, when we're nice and trashed, we'll eat to curb some of the effects of the booze. Well, for you at least. And then? We'll drink some more!"

"Brilliant," I grinned.

"Don't worry kid, I'll take care of you if you overdo it," Ryoko smiled as she poked me in the ribs, "After all, I'm a professional."

"I don't plan on that happening," I replied seriously.

"Famous last words," she simply said in return. Another point for her.

When we got back downstairs, Ayeka was still elbow deep in her soap opera. I could already tell that Sasami was whipping together another delicious smelling meal. There was still no sign of Kiyone or Mihoshi, and I doubt that Nobuyuki had gotten off of work yet, that is considering he follows the traditionally scheduled work day. Nothing had changed since this morning; just like that, the people here had already gotten used to my presence.

As the two of us walked down the stairs, Ayeka noticed us and turned around. "Well Justin, it's good to see you've made a friend this fast."

"Too be honest," I said as I shrugged Ryoko's arm off my shoulder, "I don't really think Ryoko would have given me much of a choice otherwise."

"Yes well," Ayeka said while making eye contact with the bottle of whiskey in my hand, "Dinner should be ready soon, just make sure you're presentable. Yo… - Katsuhito will be joining us tonight and you're going to want to make a good impression."

"Oh don't be so prude Princess. This kid needs a shot or two to make him a little less stiff," Ryoko commented as she punched me in the arm, "Besides, he'll be under my care tonight."

"That's what I'm worried about…" Ayeka mumbled, "Justin? Just remember you have the power to say no."

"Of course," I replied, skeptical of both of these girls now more than ever. It was clear to see that these two didn't see eye to eye.

"Alright Justin, let's go," Ryoko said as she grabbed my arm.

"Where in the hell are we going anyway?" I asked.

"Relax," Ryoko said as she tugged me towards the door, "we're just going to enjoy the sunset outside for a little while."

Before I knew it we were both headed out of the house and onto the porch which overlooked the massive lake. The sun was setting behind the mountain range far off into the distance. Its rays were casting gorgeous colors across the sky, giving everything a warm and orangey glow. Even the clouds were in on the action as they lay motionless in the atmosphere. It was a brilliant display of nature, and even more beautiful to me, was the science behind how it all occurred. It takes a moment like that to make you appreciate the diversity of well, everything on this blue marble we live on. Well technically, I don't live here as a permanent resident, but the point remains.

"Alright now I'm going to need you to wrap your arms around my waist and hold on tight. And give me your bottle as well," Ryoko said.

"Do what now?" I asked, severely confused.

"Just do it," she demanded.

"Alright chill I'll do it," I responded with slight agitation, "Um, should I stand in front of you or behind you?"

"I don't give a damn just pick a spot," Ryoko replied, now her voice becoming annoyed as well.

"Well some people have a preference that's all; I didn't want to make you feel uncomfortable. Damn," I said while walking behind her.

Without further conversation I wrapped my arms around her waist and locked them tightly. With zero warning Ryoko leapt into the air and continued ascending into the sky. I instantly locked my arms tighter around her waist, and could feel her abs adjusting to my pressure on them. Not even a second later and we were back on solid ground, so to speak. When I looked around I discovered that Ryoko had simply gotten us up onto the rooftop of the house. For a moment there I thought we were going on a serious sightseeing adventure, with no forms of safety whatsoever. Luckily for me, it was only a twenty foot increase in elevation. Wait a minute…

"You don't want me to get down from here do you?" I said, surprised.

Ryoko simply grinned, "Hey, I'm not taking any chances with you. And plus, you agreed to lighten up and unwind with me, I can't have you pussying out now."

I looked at Ryoko, and then down at the ground twenty feet below me, then back at Ryoko, "Fine, give me the bottle and let's get started."

"Hold on cowboy," Ryoko said while holding the bottle of Jack Daniels further away from me, "This isn't a one night stand with some college bimbo. You're in good company with good drink. You savor moments like these so they last longer in your memory."

"Yeah. Sure. That is considering you remember anything the morning after," I smirked.

"Stay here," Ryoko laughed, "I'm going to go get my own stuff. Don't go anywhere."

Within a blur of movement Ryoko disappeared from sight. I found myself standing alone on the rooftop with a full, unopened bottle of Jack Daniels in my hand. The dark colored, blended whiskey was glowing from the sun's rays that were penetrating through the glass. It reminded me of sweet tea for some reason, something that people in the southern region of the United States drink religiously. I removed the plastic covering that rested on the cap and shoved it in my pocket so it wouldn't blow away in the wind. A simple twist and the cap came right off. I brought the bottle up to my nose and took a quick sniff, the smell of alcohol instantly flooding my nostrils. The aroma was captivating, so I pressed the bottle to my lips and let the whiskey enter my mouth. The flavor was intense, the alcohol even more so. You could genuinely taste the barrel that the whiskey aged in, along with all the other flavors involved in the fermenting process. The very second I swallowed the liquid I could feel the sensation of fiery air making its way back up into my mouth from the depths of my stomach. With a quick exhale the fumes of the alcohol left my mouth, and for a moment there I childishly thought of myself as a dragon breathing fire. And just like that, the rumbling in my stomach began, as the alcohol was beginning to break down on the molecular level. On an empty stomach, this honestly wouldn't take long at all, not with liquor this strong. I just hope I don't get too out of control, this Katsuhito guy sounds like your typical stern grandfather figure who hates the idea of non-traditionalism.

"Well, what do you think?" Ryoko's voice called out from behind.

I turned around to see her holding a very large, vase looking container that heavily resembled a moonshine jug, "I think drinking this shit straight, without anything to mix it with is suicide."

"What's wrong? Not man enough?" Ryoko teased.

"It's not about masculinity at this point, but more or less common sense," I replied as I hypocritically took another sip from the bottle, "I don't suppose you guys have any Coca Cola I could mix this with?"

"Nope, looks like you're stuck with drinking it straight!" Ryoko grinned. Please, this is exactly what she wanted.

"So be it," I said while holding up my bottle towards Ryoko. I took yet another sip from the bottle and sat my happy ass down next to her. It hasn't even been five minutes and my metabolism was already betraying me. With alcohol, I feel like it always starts in your eyes, that feeling of inebriation.

Ryoko looked at me and nudged me in the shoulder, "Wanna have a drinking contest?"

I looked at her with a smartass look and stared for a second before responding, "You're joking."

Ryoko took the seal off of her jug and wafted the scent of her own liquor towards me. The gaseous cloud of alcohol being blown into my face made my eyes water just a bit, but enough to make me blink in surprise, "Holy shit what in the hell is that?"

"This?" Ryoko said while cradling the jug in her arms and slightly tapping her finger on the outside casing, "This is a special brew that you can't get anywhere but from a good friend of mine that I know. Want a taste?"

I took the jug from her hands and stared down to look at the liquid content inside. I was scared. Very scared in fact, mainly because I had no clue what this stuff was or what it could do to my liver. In the back of my head I could hear Ryoko's voice saying "Do it," repeatedly until I gave into her peer pressure. As I moved the jug closer to my lips, I could see Ryoko's face lighten up with a huge smile as she anticipated my reaction to tasting her 'special brew.' I put the jug up to my lips and slightly eased up so that the liquid would slowly trickle in for that small sample to taste. Suddenly I felt the jug thrust upwards and the alcohol rushed into my mouth, completely filling it to the brim. I pulled the jug away as quickly as I could, but couldn't avoid some of the alcohol splashing all over my face. I can't believe Ryoko just pulled a childish prank like that. But even more importantly, I couldn't believe just how strong this alcohol was. It was burning worse than my Jack Daniels was. I was dying, or it felt like it.

"Now swallow," Ryoko said, still grinning. Her sense of humor was…unique.

Breathing only through my nostrils, I took in a deep breath, and prepared for the inevitable. A second later I downed the entire concentration of alcohol in my mouth in one strong gulp. As soon as it touched my stomach I started coughing up fiery heat once again. The fumes even made their way into my nasal cavity, and for a moment there I was sure that I was going to vomit all over the place.

"What the shit woman?" I yelled.

"I honestly couldn't resist. Plus, now you'll be able to drink your own booze much easier. You can thank me later," Ryoko replied nonchalantly.

"What in the hell was that? Moonshine?" I asked, wiping the stuff off of my face.

"That's right, how'd you know?" Ryoko replied curiously.

"Moonshine has a distinct flavor, and it's ridiculously strong. And illegal," I said, adding in the last bit for reinforcement. However, I doubt she cared.

"Illegal or not, it won't stop me from getting it," Ryoko said as she took the jug from my hands and proceeded in drinking the moonshine like it was water.

There was no beating this woman it seems, only submission to her will. She was obviously too strong for me to handle, and yet she didn't seem to care either way. She was superhuman. It's just plain and simple who the victor in any confrontation would be. Honestly though, given that the confrontation was only a verbal one, I believe that I'd be able to stand my own ground given the proper firepower against her. Yet at this point I was still playing her game, in her field. By now the alcohol was beginning to take control of my behavior, it was only a matter of time before Ryoko and I would become a real problem for the people living here, that much I'm sure of.

"There's something that I'm confused about," Ryoko said, "It's about you and your amnesia."

"Fire away," I said while taking another sip of Jack Daniels.

"Earlier today you knew exactly where that mall was without a second thought, I guess I'm just confused on the full extent of your memory loss," she replied back.

I leaned back and rested my full body on the roof's surface whiling pondering over her question.

"Ask me my favorite color, favorite book, childhood idol, or even my family, and I can't remember a goddamned thing. However, ask me who won the Super Bowl last year, which celebrities are fucking their lives up, or how governments are screwing over the people they supposedly represent, and I can talk your ears off for hours. I guess when it comes down to it, I'm fully capable of remembering general knowledge and information anyone else could have on a subject. Make that memory personal, and that's when the blanks start to show up. My memory loss is isolated to information not well known to many people. Which brings up an incredibly interesting question that I've just now become aware of," I looked at Ryoko and waited until I had her eye contact, "_Who are you_?"

"I'm not sure I understand," Ryoko responded, slightly confused.

"Every gut feeling says that I know you, yet I can't remember. Like I said, if you were general knowledge, then technically speaking I shouldn't have a problem. But that's not the case at all, so the only logical conclusion to this situation is that you, and everyone else in this house, are somehow personally related to me in some way. It's the only thing that fits the bill," I said while downing another swallow of whiskey.

Ryoko sat there for a moment in contemplation, "Beats me kid…"

"Perhaps it's just the alcohol speaking?" I said reassuringly, "Sorry to dampen the mood."

"It could be…"Ryoko said as she looked me over, "Looks like the booze is starting to work its wonders on you eh?"

"Yeah I'm buzzing pretty good right now," I sneered, "No thanks to that gratuitous amount of moonshine that was forced down my throat by a certain somebody. Though I have to admit, drinking this straight has become much easier than earlier. Of course, I think that would have happened eventually anyway."

"So what is it like, living in America?" Ryoko asked, "Washu frowns upon the idea of taking Ryo-ohki and traveling the world. She thinks I'm going to cause an international crisis or some other lame excuse…"

"I can understand her cause for concern," I replied, "Well, I can't really remember what America was like thirteen years ago. I can't really speak for the entire country because we are so compartmentalized in regions and cultures. The issues are probably the same, except in my time period those same problems have escalated. Who knows? Maybe one day you could get a chance to live there for a few years and see for yourself."

"I'm not sure that I'd want to, I've got everything I'd ever want right here in Japan," Ryoko softly answered. Her eyes sort of wandered towards the sky.

"Well, if anything a visit to the major tourist attractions like New York City or the Grand Canyon would be good. I don't know, I live in a rural area of South Carolina, so I can't really speak like I have a good perspective on culture. Hell, come to think of it, I think I know more about Japan than I do my own country. But I digress," I rambled on.

By this time Ryoko's moonshine was really starting to get to me. That is, if you ignored the almost half gone bottle of Jack Daniels that I was still tightly gripped between my fingers. It was a good thing I was laying down on the roof or I fear we'd have some serious problems. I looked over at Ryoko and noticed that she was also experiencing the same comfortable form of inebriation that I was. She also looked like she was deep in thought. How odd.

"So Ryoko," I said, my speech already becoming slower and harder to annunciate, "What is a normal day at this place? I mean, I show up randomly and sort of invade your guy's lives and none of you really seem to have a problem with it. Where I come from if I showed up in someone's home they'd go straight for a double barreled shotgun loaded with buckshot. How come you people were so welcoming of me so quickly?"

I could tell Ryoko was laughing on the inside just by looking at me. It HAD to of been because of my poor ability to hold liquor unlike herself.

After a quick stretch Ryoko opened her mouth, "To be honest we're all sort of guests here except Nobuyuki, Tenchi, and Katsuhito. The rest of us just sort of showed up here uninvited. And several years later, we're still here. Nobuyuki probably sympathized with your situation, and well, since you're unlikely to cause any kind of property damage, probably agreed simply because you'd be the easiest to handle out of the rest of the people here."

"Property damage, do I really want to know?" I asked sarcastically.

"No, you _really _don't. There are so many stories…" she replied.

"Well NOW I want to know. Tell me." I said.

"I really don't feel like it," Ryoko sighed.

"Well tell me anyway." I demanded.

"No."

"Yes."

"NO."

"Uh…YES."

"Now I'm definitely not going to tell you," Ryoko responded as she took another gulp of her moonshine.

For a second I just stared at Ryoko in disbelief. I should have expected this. I wish I was able to just deny someone service whenever I felt like it. For a few seconds I trained myself in thought of what could possibly provoke Ryoko enough to get her to come out of her reclusive shell. Let's be logical here, Ryoko will take no time to crack a joke or embarrass someone, but when it comes to her own emotions she's very distant. I've got it.

"I've changed my mind. Let's have that drinking contest."

Ryoko busted out laughing, spewing the remaining moonshine in her mouth all over the rooftop, "You're serious aren't you?"

"You heard me. Let's have a drinking contest. If I win then you have to tell me all those riveting stories from your past, and no cutting corners!" I said, halfway slurring my words.

Ryoko looked at me with a devastating stare, "And if I win?"

"Hmm," I mumbled while stroking my pathetic excuse for a goatee, "You make a fair point. Well what do you propose? Nothing naked."

"How about this? I'll tell you what it is after we finish the contest. Take it or leave it," Ryoko replied.

I stared at her with my tired eyes, "Now we both know I'm getting screwed here in this contract, but sure, I'll agree to your terms."

"Fantastic," Ryoko grinned deviously.

"We're gunna need shot glasses," I smiled in return.

Ryoko laughed uncontrollably under her breath as she phased herself through the rooftop and down into the house. What the hell was I getting myself into?

Seconds later she reappeared in front of me with two tiny porcelain cups, most likely used for sake. "You ready?" she asked.

"First, I want you to make me a pinkie promise that you'll keep your end of the bargain," I stated.

I held out my hand, only my pinky finger extended outwards towards Ryoko. Without noticeable hesitation she extended her own pinker and sealed the deal, "Whatever, just make sure you keep your end as well," she said.

"Alright then, let round one commence!" I shouted with excitement.

Ryoko filled her shot glass up with her moonshine; I filled my own up with Jack Daniels. We both knocked the glasses together like we were drinking professionals and tossed the shot back. Within a moment round one was over and we were refilling our glasses up for round two. Another glass filled, another glass empty. Round Three. My stomach felt like it was a machine that was being pushed too far. Round four was over. I needed to get into the zone if I was going to beat Ryoko. Round five. The sun had now gone down behind the mountains as twilight was setting over us. Round six. Ryoko wasn't flinching. Round seven. I honestly can't even think properly anymore, my sentence construction feels like a guy in a car speeding down the wrong end of the highway. Something was wrong, Ryoko's eyes were sharp and clear, like she wasn't even being phased by the alcohol. Round eight. I had to piss really badly. Round nine. I'm seriously about to piss my pants. Round ten.

"Oh I should probably tell you, Ryoko giggled after our tenth shot, "That I metabolize alcohol faster than anyone on this planet. Good luck."

"You're…such a bitch," I said with my eyes halfway closed, "I mean like…I totally should have expected this much from you."

"You still good to go another few rounds?" Ryoko asked. Clearly she could tell I was in terrible shape.

"Oh hell yeah, babe I haven't even started yet," I boasted proudly.

"I like your spirit," Ryoko said as she refilled our glasses, "but you're pushing yourself a bit too far. And your word choice is starting to creep me out a bit."

Without flinching Ryoko downed the eleventh shot, while I struggled even holding my own shot steady. I stared intensely at the glass in front of me, my body was rejecting the very thought of it coming closer to my lips. But I couldn't lose to her; clearly I was obligated to retain my masculine nature. Losing to a girl would forever scar that beautiful complexity. I felt miserable, but I forced my hand to move the glass closer to my mouth until I was in a good spot to toss the liquor straight down my throat. I leaned my head back, opened my mouth and….

[][][]

"And that's all I can really remember," Justin said, exhaling deeply.

"I'm surprised you even remember THAT much," Ryoko added.

"That would explain a lot, "Washu responded, noticeably amused, "Well Ryoko, what happened next?"

"Well, as you could imagine, Justin was already drunk to no end at this point. The next hour was nothing special: we simply joined everyone for dinner. This kid almost embarrassed me around Katsuhito with the way he was acting. But then he started making fun of Ayeka, and that was probably the highlight of the conversation at the table. After that…"

[][][]

Nobuyuki popped his head into the room and looked around at all the hungry faces with a smile, "I'm going to go get father and let him know that dinner is ready. Be back shortly."

Justin was eyeing Kiyone with a stern conviction. He wasn't sure when the right moment to ask her about the gun would be. That is, assuming that Kiyone is even allowed to carry her weapon when off duty. Kiyone, too tired to noticed Justin's interest in her, was laying her head numbly on the table as if she couldn't wait any longer for Katsuhito to get here. Mihoshi was just as impatient, but still fired up with enough energy to distribute to everyone sitting at the table. Ayeka sat there quietly, but inside her mind was running around in hundreds of different places. Sasami was still roaming around the kitchen and getting everything ready.

Justin looked up at Sasami as she scrambled everywhere, "Sasami, do you need some help?" he said sincerely.

Sasami looked Justin over; she already knew the answer to that: Not no, but hell no. This was no time for a potential disaster in the kitchen. However, it wouldn't be the first time. "No it's fine, just sit there, relax and let me handle it," she lied with a gentle smile.

Ayeka, who was sitting right next to Justin, leaned over to his left ear. "Justin, you listen well now, be on your best behavior when Katsuhito gets here," she whispered sharply.

Justin looked back at Ayeka with tired eyes, "Easy princess. I got this," he reassured her, "I'll only speak when I feel it is absolutely necessary."

Ayeka pinched Justin in the arm, "And stop calling me princess; you're starting to sound like Ryoko."

"Ouch, listen here woman -"

As soon as Justin opened his mouth to speak his mind, Nobuyuki and Katsuhito entered the room, quickly gaining Justin's attention. His mind was now set on figuring out who Katsuhito was, and why specifically Ayeka garnered such respect for the man. With a sense of reckless abandon Justin got up from his seat and made his way over to Katsuhito.

Justin looked the old man in the eyes and extended his hand gregariously, "Pardon my current condition sir, I'm Justin and it's very nice to meet you." The poor fool still didn't realize that shaking hands wasn't exactly a custom heavily practiced in the region.

The others were practically stunned that Justin was able to put on such a convincing act. They all knew that not even seconds earlier that he was acting like that one guy at a bar who you just wanted far, far away from you. For some reason he had decided to present himself like a model citizen. Katsuhito looked Justin over, easily deciphering exactly what was going on. There was no doubt that this was Ryoko's doing. Ironically, there was zero collateral damage around the house or on Justin's person. The old man was impressed that Justin had been able to be around Ryoko and not end up in a galactic conflict.

"Hmm," Katsuhito grinned in his usual fashion, shaking Justin's hand in the process, "My, what well manners you have. Nobuyuki's told me a great deal about you already. Come and sit so we can eat, this old man is hungry."

The three men found their seats at the dinner table. Meanwhile, Justin looked back at Ayeka with a face full of sarcasm, clearly showing off to her that he had this entire situation under control. Ayeka on the other hand, become more nervous from Justin's comedic and potentially destructive behavior. She couldn't predict his actions; they were random to her. Yet to Justin everything he did was perfectly calculated. He would push further into the probabilities and properly adjust based on how the situation was going. In other words, he felt entirely confident in his abilities. Call them drunken optimism goggles. Or even call it blind stupidity.

Once again Sasami had prepared a meal fit for royalty, as she enigmatically does every single day. If it were ever called to question, Sasami's actions within the Masaki House were clearly ways of saying thank you for the hospitality that has been providing for all of these years. Still, it was rather odd that a young child would be in charge of preparing and maintaining the place like a stereotypical housewife would. However, at the same time Sasami was really the only person qualified to sustain a standard of living that everyone had been living under for through years now. Without her help, it would be just another spitting image of a bachelor pad; that is, except for the fact that it would be filled with women, rather than men.

"So Justin," Sasami said, directing everyone's attention towards him, "this was your first day here living with us. How has your day been so far?"

"Yes Justin," Ryoko added, clasping her hands under her chin, "How _was_ your day today?"

Justin just sat there with a rice bowl glued to his mouth, looking around at all of the staring faces. What was this, an interview? With a smooth motion he sat the bowl down, swallowed the rice and refreshed his throat with some hot green tea. He leaned his head back and recounted his day, starting from where he awoke in the living room, all the way through his immature antics with Ryoko; and now in this moment, where he was enjoying a well prepared meal with a good group of people who he didn't even know. This could easily be the alcohol talking, but Justin hadn't felt this cheerful and warm inside in quite some time. After carefully considering what had happened to him, and what could happen to him, Justin decided that regardless of his memory loss that he was legitimately appreciating his time here, albeit only hours in.

Justin looked at Sasami and smiled, "All things considered, today was fantastic. It makes me extremely appreciative that I ended up in your company rather than being stranded somewhere else, like in the middle of Tokyo for example."

"After hearing about your dilemma," Katsuhito chimed in, "I think it'd be best if you stayed here for as long as you like. After all, one more helping hand around the house couldn't hurt."

Kiyone couldn't help but to laugh, "That's good, since Sasami does most of the work around here anyway."

"And then there are others who don't do anything at all," Ayeka said, looking directly at Ryoko.

"Well if I remember correctly," Justin grinned, "weren't you the one sitting on the couch all day watching soap operas?"

"That is completely irrelevant!" Ayeka hissed.

"I respectively disagree," Justin replied.

Katsuhito sat quietly at the head of the dinner table, his arms crossed loosely and his ears soaking up the exciting dialogue. The house almost seemed to be alive with conversation once more, during a time when one boy named Tenchi Masaki used to live here. That is, before that boy became a man and pursued his education on the collegiate level. It's amazing, all things considered, that Tenchi continually decides on a normal life regardless of all the events that have unfolded before him. Who could blame him? It's very possible that people not situated in his position envy his lifestyle greatly. And at the same time, those who have walked a similar path to his wish the same as Tenchi does: a normal, peaceful existence.

"Oh come now Princess, you know better than to argue a man who has been drinking. There's simply no talking sense into them!" Ryoko joked.

Justin, feeling Ryoko's sarcasm, decided to play along, "That's right. Just go ahead and try."

Ayeka realized that there was no hope, so she reluctantly backed off and went back to eating her meal. It was a small victory, but Ryoko would savor every second of it.

Still, Katsuhito was having just as much trouble figuring Justin out as Washu was. Sure, it's the first day that he's been here, but his mood swings have been all but readable. One minute he'll be staring off into nothingness, lost in thought, and the next he'll be very spirited like he doesn't have a care in the world. It was an obvious sign of someone who was truly in distress. Luckily for this child, he managed to fall into the right place at the right time. Katsuhito was certain that Washu would discover a solution; it was only a matter of time. Because of this, Katsuhito would let Justin's drunken stupor slide for now. Besides, it's a refreshing change of pace. It's a pity, really, that no one can ask Justin any personal questions, regardless of how badly everyone wanted to know. It was simply an uncomfortable situation that everyone at the table was trying to make the best of. Perhaps one day they would know.

"Alright, it's time to stop picking on Ayeka," Justin said.

"Yes," Ayeka replied, "please do."

"So, Justin," Katsuhito chimed in, "How are you planning to carry your weight around here?"

Justin looked at the old man, not knowing his hidden motives behind the question. Katsuhito on the other hand, simply wanted to know if Justin planned on persevering through this endeavor.

"Well," Justin replied, "I guess you could just tell me to do something, and I'll try my best at it. I'm relatively strong and manual labor doesn't scare me. As long as it's not life threatening by any means I'll attempt it. Actually….that depends on how exciting said life threatening task would be."

Katsuhito smiled at the boy's humbleness and humor, "That's good. We'll see where you skills are soon enough."

"Ryoko…" Justin said as he finished his last bowl of rice, "I have a favor to ask of you."

"Sure kid," she replied, "what is it?"

Justin stood away from the table, "If the rest of you don't mind, I'd like to take care of a personal matter."

Katsuhito nodded his head, "Please, don't let us keep you."

"Thank you sir," Justin said.

"What exactly do you have in mind?" Ryoko asked Justin.

"I'll tell you on the way," Justin answered as he left the kitchen.

Ryoko followed Justin through the living room and outside. He looked back up to the night sky, gazing at the infinite sea of stars before him.

"I need you to take me back home," Justin requested, "Something inside is begging me to return to the area and investigate."

"What? Right now?" Ryoko asked.

"Yes. If you don't mind that is. It'd mean a lot to me."

Ryoko rubbed the back of her head, "Sure kid, I don't see why not."

Justin turned around, and wrapped his arms tightly around Ryoko, sinking his head into her chest.

Ryoko instantly recoiled, "What…what the-"

"Thank you," he said thoughtfully, "Thank you for being such a good friend."

"What's with the sudden sappy attitude?" Ryoko asked, worried.

"I mean it," Justin said, finally released his grip on her, "I'm lost in this world, and you've chosen to help me through it. That means a lot, even to a person who has no idea who he is."

He was inebriated beyond his limits, yet his words rang sincere.

Ryoko felt humbled by his comment, "Well, then let's go! No sense standing around."

She summoned Ryo-ohki, and within moments they were already headed out into the darkness, making their way towards the eastern coast of America. For the first hour, Justin could only saw the darkness of the ocean before him. It was only when they reached the western shore that he got to see a dazzling display of the city lights from coast to coast. Ryo-ohki was able to travel faster in the dark, considering that she didn't have to resort as much power to her visible cloaking. The stealth systems were still online in order to avoid radar and other forms of electronic detection, but needless to say, she was flying faster than any jet made by humanity could muster.

Before they knew it, the three had already returned to the southern countryside. Justin was the first off the ship. He staggered around the ground for a few moments until his legs got used to a solid, non-moving surface once again. The remnants of his past life, at least in this universal plane, still remained absent. Nothing had changed. Still, he continued to walk around the property to feed his insatiated curiosity.

Ryoko teleported down from Ryo-ohki, "I brought more beer, not like you need it," she said as she tossed a bottle towards Justin.

Justin caught the bottle and twisted off the metal cap.

"So what are we doing here again, anyway?" Ryoko asked.

"Gut instinct is telling me I missed something," Justin answered as he took a large drink from the beer bottle. He was strangely more attentive then he was during dinner.

Ryo-ohki hovered overhead, illuminating the ground with one of her search lights. Justin continually walked around the perimeter of what was once the location of his house. Now, there only lay debris and a muddy pit.

"I don't understand," he said, "How would getting thrown into this Universe affect the lives of my relatives? Or even my property?"

"If there's one thing I've learned in my lifetime, it's that anything is possible…" Ryoko chimed in.

"Dammit, it's so hard to think with all this stupid alcohol clouding my head. Ryoko, lend me some of your sobriety," Justin said.

"Sorry, can't do that," Ryoko responded. She was off wondering the property as well, although nothing really interested her. After all, all she could see was grass and concrete. What was there to see?

Justin was now in the center of what was once his house. Ryoko observed him as he made his way about the area. Something didn't feel quite right in the air. There was a certain electrical current that she could feel running its way through the warm, humid breeze.

"Tell me something, what do you think happened to the _other_ me?" Justin thought aloud.

"What other you?" Ryoko asked, stopping where she stood, "Are you okay? Something feels off."

"Parallel or alternate universe….which is it?" Justin asked himself as he stared up at the night sky, "There's evidence here that someone like me used to live here. What do you think happened to him? Surely Washu would have thought of this already…then why hasn't she told me yet?"

"Ryo-ohki do you feel that?" Ryoko asked.

The hovering cabbit answered with a weary meow. She could tell something was wrong as well. Justin was asking thought provoking questions that he didn't even seem capable of. Technically, his alcohol toxicity should have him on the ground and passed out by now. Yet he was functioning as if the exact opposite was happening, but for some reason only he was unaware. The electrical current was beginning to intensify. Even the clouds overhead seemed to be reacting to it. The space pirate's heart began to thump in her chest.

"Justin, get over here now!" she yelled.

"Man, where did this headache suddenly come from?" Justin pondered as he knelt down onto the cold cement.

A shadow suddenly emerged directly behind him. Electrical static crackled through the air. Ryo-ohki instantly shined her spotlight on Justin's position, but nothing could seem to penetrate the shroud of blackness around this ominous entity.

"Move you fool!" Ryoko shouted as she made a dash for the unknown enemy.

Justin collapsed onto the ground, his hands gripping his head, his fingers trying to pierce through his skull.

"It hurts like no other…" he mumbled in the dirt.

Ryoko phase shifted in front of Justin and drew her plasma blade. The shadowy figure stood defiant in the darkness.

"So you do care," the figure spoke, its menacing voice echoing through Ryoko's ears, "However, I have no time to deal with you. If you value your life, leave the boy and save yourself."

"Not a chance," Ryoko responded, clenching her blade tighter.

"So be it."

The shadow instantly disappeared.

Ryoko flinched in reaction, "Ryo-ohki, get Justin out of here NOW!"

Ryo-ohki hovered over and instantly teleported Justin up onto the bridge. A second later, she was already at max speed and thundering off into the distance. It all happened incredibly fast. Ryoko was now alone.

"Predictable."

"Where are you?" Ryoko yelled, frantically looking for a minute trace of movement.

"Look around you. Where there is darkness, I exist."

"What is that supposed to-"

Ryoko was interrupted with a powerful delivery of kinetic energy to the stomach. The blow sent her to her knees and left her gasping for breath.

"Silly girl, it means exactly what I said."

"That voice…" Ryoko stammered.

"That's right, think long and hard."

The voice sounded disembodied, yet a combination of two people talking in unison. They were both familiar, and it began to terrify her.

Ryoko finally got back up to her feet, her heart now racing.

"There's a good chance you would have survived a bit longer if you would've just let me have the boy. Now that I think about it, however, tormenting him further only helps me achieve my end goal. So I must thank you for that; and for your sacrifice as well."

"No one's getting sacrificed," Ryoko sternly insisted.

"We shall see."

Another wave of kinetic energy spiraled through the air. This time, however, it was clearly visible through a trail of blue haze. Ryoko dodged it and unleashed a barrage of energy blasts from the attack's origin.

Nothing was there.

Another wave of energy came from behind, hitting Ryoko directly in the back and sending her hurtling through the air. She collided with the ground with immense force.

"Your ship is still as fast as ever. I can feel it moving through the sky now. Consider yourself lucky."

Ryoko pulled herself up and took a deep breath. This was bad. She had no backup, and had just sent her contingency weapon off to save some boy she barely even knew.

"And why is that?" she asked.

The shadow once again manifested itself into a human form in front of Ryoko.

"While I may be free now, I'm afraid this is only temporary. When Justin returns, there's a strong chance he'll regain control of his mind. When that happens, I'll simply disappear until I can find other ways of escaping. Given the speed of your aircraft, I'd say you have two hours to entertain me. I know you won't disappoint me Ryoko, you've always been quite the courageous fighter."

Ryoko didn't quite understand how to soak up this monster's words. How did it know about her?

The shadow dispersed around her. Ryoko leapt into the air, instinctively awaiting the next attack. More semi-transparent waves of kinetic attacks started coming from all sides. Ryoko was trying her hardest to dodge, prepare, and predict where the next assaults would come from. But this was difficult. The shadow didn't appear to exhibit any form of predictable behavior. Everything was, oddly enough, systematically random.

"Why don't you face me coward?" Ryoko taunted.

"Is that truly what you desire?"

Ryoko began charging up another ball of plasma in her hand, "Fight me fair or don't fight me at all."

"As you wish."

The apparition manifested itself into a condensed, human-like form and began walking towards her. Ryoko took on a defensive stance, trying to get ready for anything. A strong light emanated from the energies burning intensively in her hand. The manifestation walked directly up to Ryoko, stopping just feet short of her.

Ryoko's face went ghost-white.

Justin's face became illuminated in the darkness.

"I have a feeling," he said, "that this will be the longest two hours of your life."

[][][]

Washu sat motionless in her chair, trying to let both stories sink in effectively.

"So what's what you meant," Justin finally said, ", when you said you were unsure if I was the real one. Ryoko, I'm so sorry."

"Save it," she responded.

"So there's two of you, Justin," Washu added, "Is that what you're saying Ryoko?"

Ryoko looked down at the floor, "I don't' know. That thing had two voices. It was hard to figure out the other one through the chaos."

"Things are starting to make sense, if at least piece by piece," Washu said in contemplation, "unfortunately for you Justin, the circumstances forbid me from letting you leave this lab."

He looked up at Washu with an empty stare.

Ryoko jumped up in her cell, "Washu, his eyes!"

"I see it," Washu replied, getting up out of her chair, "don't worry, we should be safe."

Justin stood up in his cell. He placed his hand upon the protective barrier. The wall of energy started popping in reaction to the pressure. Washu took a step back.

"Get me out of here!" Ryoko yelled, "I can protect you."

"Can you feel that?" Washu said, ignoring her daughter's plea, "there's nothing we can do at this time. Trust me when I say that you're better off in there than out here."

Justin's hand broke through the barrier, completely short circuiting the entire system.

"He must be in a unique state of despair right now," Justin's animated body said.

"What?" Washu asked.

Justin's shell looked around the lab.

"He can see everything right now; I've personally allowed that to happen. He's been listening attentively since Ryoko began her tale. Now that he knows the full story, it will make my victory all the better."

"Let me guess, _you're_ the one who attacked Ryoko," Washu said.

"Ah, you're as perceptive as ever my dear Washu. It's a shame they won't let you back into the Science Academy, you could do so much for the galaxy. Yes, I attacked Ryoko because she wouldn't surrender the boy to me."

Whatever was controlling Justin looked up and smiled.

"I can feel his rage building up right now. The sensation is incredibly gratifying."

"You're sick," Washu scorned.

"Washu let me out!" Ryoko screamed, still insisting on her freedom.

"Relax girl," Justin interrupted, "I'm not concerned with you at this moment. Attacking a wounded animal isn't very tasteful. Now if you'll excuse me, I must be going."

Washu clenched her fists, "And where exactly…are you going to?"

Justin released a sinister grin.

"Tokyo."

Suddenly, a rift portal opened up within the lab, unleashing a vortex of unstable energy. Seconds later, it was gone, and so was Justin.


End file.
